


Save Face

by baeconandeggs, ohsehunseoul



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bands, Angst with a Happy Ending, Dark elements, Drummer Park Chanyeol, M/M, Minor Violence, Rapper Oh Sehun, Singer Byun Baekhyun, best friend Oh Sehun, established fame, suicide mention (no major character death), troubled Chanyeol
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-12
Updated: 2019-05-12
Packaged: 2020-03-02 08:38:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 25,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18807622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/baeconandeggs/pseuds/baeconandeggs, https://archiveofourown.org/users/ohsehunseoul/pseuds/ohsehunseoul
Summary: Love is a strange concept, especially when you don't realize you're in love. It hits you like a ton of bricks, which is what happened to Byun Baekhyun when he realized he was deeply in love with his band  mate, Park Chanyeol. Baekhyun knows the consequences of being in love with another man, as does Chanyeol, so they do whatever they can to deny their own feelings to themselves. Pain and suffering is better than losing everything you worked so hard for, or at least Baekhyun thought.





	Save Face

**Author's Note:**

> **Disclaimer: baeconandeggs/the mods is/are not the author/s of this story. Authors will be credited and tagged after reveals.** The celebrities' names/images are merely borrowed and do not represent who the celebrities are in real life. No offense is intended towards them, their families or friends. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this fictional work. No copyright infringement is intended.  
>   
> 
> **Author's Note:** To the prompter, I hope you enjoy! I really liked this prompt and I hope I did it justice. I had to tweak a few things to fit the story better, so I hope it is everything you wanted! Thanks for the great prompt, it was so much fun to write.

Sehun tossed his tablet on the couch in between Chanyeol and Baekhyun and grinned broadly.

“Quadruple million, baby.” The auburn-haired male crossed his arms and nodded down at the news article pulled up on the device.

Baekhyun quirked a brow at his bandmate. “What?”

Sehun sighed before picking up his tablet and collapsing in between the two. He held the device at arm’s length, so the three of them could see the screen. “Oasis is officially a quadruple million seller!”

Chanyeol’s eyes widened in shock before he leaned in to the screen and used his index finger to read through the article. “This is real? You’re not messing with us?”

“Nope.” Sehun popped the ‘p’ as he spoke. “We sold a million albums in less than a month.”

“Holy shit, guys!” Baekhyun shot up “Holy shit! We did it!”

Sehun and Chanyeol stood up as well and they enveloped into a group hug.

“Hard work pays off.” Sehun’s voice was muffled by Chanyeol’s shoulder. “We’re unstoppable now.”

Baekhyun smiled fondly at Sehun before averting his attention to Chanyeol, who was looking right back at him. Baekhyun offered the taller a small smile before separating himself from the two.

“So,” Sehun clapped his hands together, “We should celebrate tonight.”

“Can’t.” Chanyeol clicked his tongue and eyed the youngest apologetically. “I have to get my hair done for the repackage. If I finish early, then I can, but I don’t know.”

“Damn.” Sehun sighed. “How about you, Baek? Or are you getting a makeover too?”

“Sure, we can do something.” Baekhyun smiled. “They’re not doing anything to me. Don’t you know that the company enjoys frying Chanyeol’s hair the most? They usually leave us alone.”

“That’s true.” Sehun nodded in agreement. “Everyone loves you with this color anyway.” He extended his index finger and thumb to hold a strand of Baekhyun’s honey-colored hair in between them. Chanyeol looked away.

“I’m going to head out.” Chanyeol threw his thumb in the direction of the door. “See you.”

Sehun and Baekhyun waved goodbye before relaxing on the couch. After chatting for some time, both of them found themselves back on their phones.

Baekhyun opened his Instagram, as he usually did when he was bored.

“Hey, want to do a live with me?” Baekhyun asked Sehun as he checked his appearance in his front-facing camera.

“I’ll make a cameo, sure.” Sehun said. “I’m going to stop by the studio in a little bit, so we can hang tonight. Is that okay?”

“Not a problem.” Baekhyun said as his finger hovered over the ‘start’ button. “Ready?”

“Ready.”

Baekhyun and Sehun did a live together for nearly an hour before Sehun left. Baekhyun continued his live.

“Hopefully I’ll be entertaining on my own and you guys won’t get bored!” Baekhyun leaned his head back on the cushions of the couch. He read some of the comments before his phone buzzed.

“One second, guys. Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere. Yeol text me.” Baekhyun instinctively smiled when he saw Chanyeol’s name flash across his screen. “He asked if I’ve eaten.” Baekhyun quickly sent a response before focusing back on his chat.

“Where is he? Oh, he may or may not be getting his hair done for the repackage.” Baekhyun winked. “The company is going to kill me if they see this, oops.” He offered the camera an insincere apologetic smile. “No, I don’t know the color, but I’m hoping it’s red. Chanyeol looked very handsome with red hair.”

Immediately after Baekhyun mentioned Chanyeol, the comments filled with their ‘ship name’ that the fans gave them. Chanbaek, or a few other variants of their name, was their name together. Out of all of the ships in Oasis, Chanbaek was the most popular with the second being Sehun and Baekhyun.  Honestly, Baekhyun liked Chanbaek the most too; he liked Chanyeol the most. He love both of his bandmates, of course, but something about Chanyeol was…different.

The first time Baekhyun noticed Chanyeol was different was when they were newly formed and thrown into the world of being idols. They were pushed and shoved through the airport and Baekhyun had trouble getting away the fans that reached for him. Lucky, Chanyeol came to his rescue and protected him; politely weaving his way through the crows with his strong arms on Baekhyun’s shoulders. Since then, Chanyeol never left his side. They worked together, played video games together, ate together, and even lived together. Baekhyun considered Chanyeol his best friend. He was the puzzle piece that Baekhyun didn’t know he was missing. Chanyeol always laughed at Baekhyun’s jokes, even when they were stupid. He cried for Baekhyun when he fractured his wrist two years ago at their comeback show. He was everything to Baekhyun.

Baekhyun snapped out of his daydreaming when he heard his phone buzz again. Another message from Chanyeol that he responded to.

“Sorry, guys. I’m still tired. I think it’s the jetlag that hasn’t left me yet.” Baekhyun adjusted himself so he was laying across the whole couch, resting his head on his arm and one leg crossed over the other. “Yeah, lulu88, maybe we can do a world tour soon. I’m bummed we weren’t able to this year.”

Before Baekhyun could say anything else, the door to their dorm opened and Chanyeol emerged with a black baseball cap pulled over his hair and a brown take-out bag.

Baekhyun’s face lit up when he saw Chanyeol.

“I have a special guest.” Baekhyun smirked at the camera.

Chanyeol sauntered over and lifted up Baekhyun’s legs before sitting down and placing them over his lap. Baekhyun sat up so he could inch closer to Chanyeol to show him. His legs were still thrown over Chanyeol’s when the taller appeared on the screen.

“We’re doing a live, Chan.” Baekhyun leaned his head on Chanyeol’s shoulder.

“Hi, guys.” Chanyeol grinned and waved at the camera. After he greeted the viewers, Chanyeol focused his attention on Baekhyun. “I brought you some food. I figured we could eat together. Are you in the mood for beef? If not, I got myself some chicken and I can trade it with you. Or we can share.”

“Beef is fine, but I don’t mind sharing with you.” Baekhyun nearly forgot about the live once he made eye contact with Chanyeol.

Baekhyun moved his legs and sat close to Chanyeol. Chanyeol opened the bag and pulled out the containers.

“Want to try the kimbap first?” Chanyeol asked before he popped a piece in his mouth. Baekhyun nodded and Chanyeol used his chopsticks to take a piece and feed it to Baekhyun; careful to cup his hand under the kimbap to not drop it.

Baekhyun nodded in delight. “It’s good.” He swallowed before looking back at his phone. “Oh, I forgot we were live. I’m going to eat with Chanyeol, okay? Bye, guys!” He quickly ended the live and took the plate Chanyeol prepared for him.

“So, what color did they do?” Baekhyun asked. “I think I see some red dye that stained right here.” He poked at Chanyeol’s temple.

Chanyeol gave a breathy chuckle before removing his hat to reveal a deep red color. The hair cut remained essentially the same, minus a small trim. “They wanted to do blonde, but I didn’t think my hair could take it.” He said. “And I heard you liked the red. Something about me looking handsome?” He playfully bumped shoulders with Baekhyun.

“You were watching my live?” Baekhyun asked.

“Of course I was.” Chanyeol replaced his cap and looked at Baekhyun. “It’s you. I wouldn’t miss it.”

There was an underlying expression on Chanyeol’s face that Baekhyun couldn’t decipher. It made his heart hurt, for some reason.

“Well, thanks.” Baekhyun looked away. “Since you’re done early, we can both celebrate with Sehun.”

“By celebrating, you mean playing video games and getting drunk?” Chanyeol asked.

“Precisely.”

…

The next morning, Baekhyun’s head was pressed against Sehun’s thigh and his controller was underneath him, digging into his rib cage.

Baekhyun slowly lifted himself up and went to the bathroom to shower. He passed by Chanyeol’s room on the way to see him sleeping with the door open. Baekhyun smiled to himself before opening the door to the bathroom.

He wasn’t hungover, he just was in pain from the uncomfortable position he fell asleep in. It was pretty common for them to pass out while playing video games since one more round often turned into an all-nighter.

Baekhyun quickly showered and threw a towel around his waist before going into his room and pulling on a sweater and jeans. He went back to the bathroom to brush his hair then exited the bathroom and went into his bedroom to collapse on the bed. He pulled out his phone to check Twitter.

It was the group Twitter, but Baekhyun used it to respond to fans or to check the paparazzi photos that were released far too often.

He squinted his eyes at the trending topics to see that #Chanbaeklive was trending. Why? Sure, Chanyeol was in his live yesterday, but so was Sehun for far longer than Chanyeol.

Baekhyun clicked the tag and scrolled through it. Screencaps of Chanyeol and Baekhyun filled his screen. They included Chanyeol feeding him, Baekhyun leaning his head on Chanyeol, the two of them looking at each other, and the translations to English of what they were saying.

It was flattering to see his name trending, but the photos made his stomach sink. Baekhyun didn’t realize the way he was looking at Chanyeol. Maybe it was the way the photos were edited, but they did make Baekhyun look like he was really in love with Chanyeol.

“Hey, Baekhyun.” A groggy voice came from the doorframe. Baekhyun looked up to see Sehun leaning against the wall, rubbing his eyes with his knuckle.

“Hey, Sehun.” Baekhyun pat the bed next to him. “You can rest in here.”

Sehun lazily sauntered over and collapsed next to Baekhyun. “What are you looking at? You look pensive.”

“Just Twitter. The top trending hashtag is because of the live.” Baekhyun showed Sehun the screen. Sehun took the phone in his hands and scrolled through the pictures.

“Hm.” Sehun said to himself before handing the phone back to Baekhyun.

Baekhyun chuckled. “What?”

“You guys really do look like a couple. Those tweets are right.” Sehun closed his eyes.

Baekhyun lightly slapped Sehun’s thigh. “Don’t say that, Sehun.”

Sehun opened one eye to glance at Baekhyun. “Why?”

“Two guys, that’s insane.” Baekhyun quietly responded. “Don’t be crazy.”

“How is that crazy?” Sehun opened both of his eyes and sat up to look seriously at Baekhyun.

“Because he’s a guy. That’s weird.” Baekhyun said.

Sehun furrowed his brow, looking slightly hurt for some reason. “Weird?”

“Unnatural.” Baekhyun harshly responded, causing Sehun’s expression to worsen. “It’s just our fans shipping us, no big deal.”

“Sounds like you’re trying to convince yourself.” Sehun said. “Maybe they see something you don’t see.” He sat up. “I’m going to shower.”

Sehun left, consequently leaving Baekhyun confused.

What did he mean? Two guys loving each other…that was ridiculous…right? There was no way. He didn’t love Chanyeol. Well, he did, but not like that.

He frowned and mindlessly scrolled through the tag, accidentally clicking someone’s profile along the way.

It was a fanpage for the ship, filled with photos of Chanyeol and Baekhyun. Baekhyun didn’t know why he kept scrolling, but he landed on an analysis from their tour stop in Chengdu two months prior.

_Chanyeol and Baekhyun went out to dinner on their own. Where was Sehun? Well, fans saw them walking late at night to after they went to dinner and there is a rumor going around that they were holding hands. I didn’t see any pictures, but Chanbaek has been super close lately. I think they’re going to come out soon. A fan also said she saw them wearing matching rings that looked like a couple set._

Baekhyun remembered that night. He was upset because he found out his grandfather had fallen and hurt himself and Baekhyun wasn’t able to go to the hospital. Chanyeol cheered him up by taking him out. Sehun didn’t come because he was visiting a friend in another city. There was no underlying reason behind it.

Oh, right. The hand holding. Well, they weren’t _holding hands._ Baekhyun was cold and Chanyeol had a hand warmer he was giving Baekhyun. Lastly, the rings weren’t couple rings. They were a gift from Chanyeol. He got one for Baekhyun since he commented how much he loved the ring Chanyeol was wearing a while back. They just happened to be wearing them the same day.

Chanyeol and Baekhyun looked so happy in the photos. It made Baekhyun almost wish that the analysis was true, and they were coming out soon.

“Hey, Baekhyun?” Baekhyun quickly locked his screen when he heard Chanyeol’s voice and looked up at Chanyeol.

“Yeah, what’s up?” Baekhyun asked.

“I have to go to a meeting in a while. Want to tag along and then we can get breakfast after?” Chanyeol asked, sleep still in his eyes.

“Sounds good.” Baekhyun moved from his mattress and to the floor to put on his shoes.

“We’ll take the motorcycle. The weather is beautiful.” Chanyeol said before turning around. “I’ll be back in five!” He called before he exited.

Sure enough, Chanyeol returned a few minutes later in a leather jacket and dark wash denim jeans. He twirled his key around his index finger as he smirked to Baekhyun.

“Ready?” Chanyeol asked.

Baekhyun nodded in affirmation and followed his bandmate to the garage where Chanyeol handed Baekhyun a helmet and put one on himself. Baekhyun got on the bike after Chanyeol and held his arms tightly around the other’s waist as they headed to the studio.

When they arrived, they went in through the private entrance and the CEO of 365 Entertainment, Lee Jinwoo, was waiting outside. His smile formed into a straight line when he saw the duo on the motorcycle.

Chanyeol parked the bike and got off of it, then lent a hand to Baekhyun to help him down. Baekhyun took Chanyeol’s larger hand and descended the motorcycle.

“Park Chanyeol.” Jinwoo said in his usual monotonous tone. “I thought I told you this meeting was just with you. Mr. Byun especially cannot attend.”

“I know.” Chanyeol removed his helmet and hung it from one of the handles before taking Baekhyun’s off of him and putting it on the opposite handle. “He’s just waiting for me because we’re going out to eat after.”

Jinwoo frowned. “Fine. Hurry up, we have a lot to discuss.”

Chanyeol and Baekhyun exchanged a glance before they both followed Jinwoo in. Jinwoo stopped in front of the meeting room and half-turned to look at Baekhyun.

“Go wait in the studio, if you must.” Jinwoo said. “You need to practice the vocals on the chorus of _Forever_ anyway. Kim says they’re weak.”

“Oh.” Baekhyun winced at the brutality in his tone. “Okay.”

“Bye, Baekhyun.” Chanyeol said before he was ushered into the meeting room.

Baekhyun went to the studio, respectfully bowing at the other bands and people in the company that he passed. He found that studio four was vacant and sat cross-legged in front of one of the mirrors. Baekhyun quickly sent a text to Chanyeol about which studio he was in and began to practice.

Time seemed to pass by at a snail’s pace until he heard the studio door slam open and a very angry looking Chanyeol emerged.

“Chan?” Baekhyun watched the other male from his reflection in the mirror. “Are you alright?”

“Just fine.” Chanyeol responded. “Let’s go.”

Baekhyun obliged and followed the older out. Not a word was spoken between them until they got back to the dorms and Chanyeol momentarily looked at Baekhyun apologetically.

“Sorry we can’t go out. I have to go.” Chanyeol’s expression changed back to anger. He slammed the door shut before Baekhyun could say anything.

Baekhyun sat on the couch deep in thought. He couldn’t understand what made Chanyeol mad all of a sudden. His immediate thought turned to Jinwoo rejecting the song Chanyeol had been working so hard on. It wouldn’t be the first time that happened, but Chanyeol was usually the type to not show his frustrations—especially not to Baekhyun.

Baekhyun couldn’t let himself think too much about the situation. He needed to practice his vocals more. While he wasn’t the leader of Oasis, he was the main vocalist, so he had to be perfect. Sehun was the leader, and also the rapper of the group. Chanyeol was the guitarist for the group, but he also did background vocals and rap. Baekhyun appreciated how Chanyeol was talented in everything he did. He envied his ability to play essentially any instrument he got his hands on.

When Baekhyun felt like his voice was on the verge of breaking from overdoing his high notes, he took a break and checked his phone to see if Chanyeol sent him a message. Nothing.

Baekhyun huffed and went to the dining room table to set his phone down before opening the refrigerator and taking out some leftover Korean barbeque from a couple of nights ago to reheat. He turned on the oven and sat at the table to browse through his phone while waiting.

Baekhyun heard the front door open and smiled to Sehun when he emerged from the hall and into the kitchen.

“Hey, Sehun.” Baekhyun smiled. “Looks like you went to the gym.” He nodded at the headphones dangling from one of his ears and the towel over his shoulder.

“It’s my rest day but apparently I like to suffer.” Sehun responded. “You’re…okay?” He asked as he approached the table and set down his bag.

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?” Baekhyun tilted his head in curiosity.

Sehun’s face dropped. “You didn’t hear.”

Baekhyun awkwardly chuckled. “I’m not following.”

Sehun sighed and sat down next to Baekhyun. “Mr. Lee probably didn’t want you to find out. He got pretty pissed off about the live last night. He said you didn’t ask permission.”

“Last time I checked, I didn’t need permission to do a live on my personal Instagram.” Baekhyun rolled his eyes.

“He made a snide remark to me.” Sehun unzipped his bag to pull out a water bottle and uncapped it. “I just ran into him before I came back here. Anyway, he said that, since I’m the leader, I need to make sure that you guys don’t do anything like that again. And,” He paused to take a drink of his water, “The next part involves Jung Soomi.”

“Oh God.” Baekhyun scowled. He genuinely enjoyed all of the other entertainers under 365 Entertainment, except Soomi. Soomi was horrible to Baekhyun. He didn’t know what she had out for him, but she did ever since they went to high school together. It was Baekhyun’s bad luck that made him wind up in the same company as her. With age, she got more immature.

“Yeah.” Sehun said. “Well, Lee is trying to get her and Chanyeol together.”

“What?” Baekhyun questioned. “You’re joking.”

Sehun shook his head. “I wish I was.”

The door opened before Sehun could elaborate further. “Maybe he’ll tell you.” Sehun whispered before standing up and heading to his room.

Baekhyun focused on the hall to wait for Chanyeol to pass, so he could get his attention. He saw Chanyeol rush by and followed him.

“Chanyeol?” Baekhyun called. He heard Chanyeol stop for a moment as if he was debating going to Baekhyun or not before continuing to walk.

Baekhyun sped up and followed behind Chanyeol. When Chanyeol went into his room and tried to close the door, Baekhyun stuck his hand out to stop the door from closing.

“Chanyeol?” Baekhyun repeated. “Are you alright?” He asked.

Chanyeol slowly turned around to face Baekhyun. His expression softened when he saw the other male.

“You can talk to me.” Baekhyun said. “Don’t shut me out; I’ll always be here for you.”

“Come in.” Chanyeol ushered for Baekhyun to enter his room and shut the door behind him. He sat at the edge of his bed and motioned for Baekhyun to follow him.

“So, what’s up?” Baekhyun eyed Chanyeol curiously.  

Chanyeol inhaled deeply before slowly exhaling through his nose. “Mr. Lee talked to me. He’s trying to set me up with Soomi.”

So, what Sehun said was true. Baekhyun swallowed deeply when a strange feeling built up in his chest.

Chanyeol continued. “He told me it would be good for our images. The female audience would love it, according to the boss. He said that I have too much of a connection with you and it isn’t what people want to see.”

“With me?” Baekhyun questioned. “So, he thinks you getting with Soomi is a better idea?”

Chanyeol shrugged. “I guess so.”

The two sat in silent for a few moments.

“So,” Baekhyun started, “Did you agree to it?”

Chanyeol looked up from his hands and to Baekhyun. “Um, not yet. Should I?”

“Do you…like her?” Baekhyun said, barely above a whisper.

“I’ve never really paid too much attention to her.” Chanyeol confessed. “I don’t know Soomi, in all honesty.” He said. “Do you think I should like her?”

“I think you should be with someone because you like them, not because of what someone else wants you to do.”

“Easier said than done, sometimes.” Chanyeol sighed. “You’re right, though. Thank you for listening, Baek.”

“You’re welcome.” Baekhyun bumped shoulders with Chanyeol. “Do you feel better now?”

“A little.” Chanyeol half-smiled. “Now that you’re here.”

Just as Baekhyun was about to open his mouth, his phone rang. He swiped to answer and held the phone up to his ear. 

"Hello?" Baekhyun spoke into the receiver. Chanyeol watched Baekhyun's face drop while listening to whoever was on the other line. With teary eyes, Baekhyun set his, still unlocked, phone on the bed and held his head in his hands. 

Chanyeol glanced down at the phone screen, tilting his head curiously as to why the screen in Baekhyun's phone was filled with images of them. One of the edits made it look like they were kissing, something they definitely weren't doing in the actual image. 

A sniffle from Baekhyun brought him out of his thoughts. 

"Who was that?" Chanyeol asked. 

"I think I mentioned Kim Baekho to you before., right?" Baekhyun could barely speak. 

"That was the guy you trained with at TH Entertainment before coming to 365, right?" Chanyeol spoke.

Baekhyun nodded. "We met in middle school."

"Is he okay? What happened?" Chanyeol's heart hurt looking at Baekhyun. 

"We have to head to practice soon." Sehun swung the door open and spoke before looking at the duo in front of him. "Baekhyun, are you okay?"

"His friend called him with some bad news, I think." Chanyeol said in a low tone. 

Sehun sat on his other side and took one of Baekhyun's hands into his own. 

Baekhyun shook his head. "It was his mother that called me. He killed himself. Turns out that he had been struggling with his sexuality and confessed to one of the other guys in the industry and, well, the guy went public about it with the company. The other trainees shunned him and the company kicked him out. He lost everything."

"Oh my God, Baekhyun, I'm so sorry." Sehun frowned. "People are so cruel to those that are different." 

"She invited me to his funeral. It is a bit last minute, but it is tomorrow. I would need to leave tonight to get to Jeju for it." Baekhyun wiped at his eyes and leaned against Chanyeol, who instinctively wrapped his arm around Baekhyun. 

"Of course, you go." Sehun nodded. "Practice can wait." 

"Thanks." Baekhyun feigned a smile. 

"Should we run it by the company first? I just don't want them to get pissed about this." Chanyeol suggested. 

"Good idea." Sehun pulled out his phone. "I'll call, since apparently Jinwoo likes to make me do everything."

Sehun dialed the number and put it on speaker. 

"Hey, Mr. Lee. Look, we are going to have to put things off for a few days. Baekhyun had a loss of someone close to him and needs to go to the funeral. Can you get him a plane ticket for the next flight to Jeju?" Sehun said. 

"Yes, of course." Lee Jinwoo said. "Byun must be devastated. It is always hard to lose a family member."

"It was a close friend, Kim Baekho from TH Entertainment." Chanyeol chimed in. "I'm sure you have heard. You know the CEO of the company, don't you?"

"Wait, Kim Baekho?" Lee Jinwoo repeated. "Never mind, he cannot go." 

Baekhyun's head shot up from Chanyeol's shoulder and he stared at the phone. 

"Why did you change your mind all of a sudden?" Sehun's tone changed into anger. 

"No one from TH Entertainment is going to that. No idols will be going; the companies are against it and, frankly, so am I. You know why he did it, right? He was gay, Mr. Oh."

"Okay?" Sehun said. "So what? That doesn't make him a bad person."

Jinwoo laughed. "You're funny. Do you not understand how disgusting that is? He was exposing everyone to that and deserves whatever happened to him. Bless his soul, but no one is going to that."

Sehun seemed to have forgotten Jinwoo was on speaker. "With all due respect, Mr. Lee, I don't agree with what you're saying."

"You like being an idol, don't you, Mr. Oh?" Jinwoo spoke. "Then I would advise you end this conversation right now."

Sehun bit at his bottom lip in frustration before Chanyeol reached for Sehun's phone. 

"Mr. Lee," Chanyeol said, "Please, just let Baekhyun go. He can use my vacation days for it, for all I care if you're worried about him not being here. He needs this."

"So, you want me to let Byun go to a faggot's funeral? What if rumors about them dating start up and Baekhyun gets accused of a scandal with him? That's what we are trying to avoid."

"We'll all go." Sehun said. "You'll get good PR about being the only CEO to let some of their idols go to the funeral. You'll garner sympathy from everyone as a compassionate hero."

"I don't think Baekhyun and Chanyeol together at a funeral like that is a good idea. Especially, Byun because he's...you know, questionable." Mr. Lee said. 

Sehun took the phone off of speaker and held it up to his ear after exchanging a glance with Chanyeol. He stood up and paced around the room while still talking to Lee Jinwoo. 

"I'm sorry you had to hear that." Chanyeol whispered to Baekhyun. 

"He must think the world of me." Baekhyun bitterly said. "I'm just inconveniencing everyone. You guys have stuff to do and this will be a bother."

"It won't be." Chanyeol held Baekhyun tighter. "Also, the only person Jinwoo thinks the world of is himself. But, for the record, I think the world of you." 

After much deliberation with Jinwoo, Sehun convinced him to let Oasis go to Jeju. They packed their bags and headed to the airport. 

They had no idea how people knew they would be at the airport, but they were bombarded with camera flashes while exiting the van. 

Sehun led them through the crowd, a bright blue hat tucked over his hair, so that Baekhyun and Chanyeol wouldn't lose him. 

Chanyeol was behind Baekhyun with a black cap and his hood tucked over his own hair, a matching black facemask to tie in the look.

When the crowd got too close, Chanyeol pushed his way behind Sehun and let Baekhyun hold onto the sleeve of his jacket. 

Baekhyun pulled his facemask down while going through security before pulling it back on and taking his bag from the check. 

Oasis made their way to the proper terminal and waited where the majority of the fans and paparazzi wouldn't be. 

"How the hell did they know we would be here?" Sehun asked, crashing into a seat to the right of Chanyeol. 

"Beats me." Chanyeol pulled his mask to rest under his chin. 

"I wouldn't hold it against Jinwoo to post about his kind-hearted decision to let us go to Jeju all over the internet. He probably wants as much publicity about this as possible." Baekhyun sighed. 

Sehun pulled out his phone to check out the news. "Wait, what the fuck?" He said out loud. 

"What? He posted it, I'm assuming?" Chanyeol asked. 

"Uh, not just that. Check this out." Sehun held his phone screen for them to see. Baekhyun leaned closer to Chanyeol and rest his elbows on Chanyeol's thigh to get a better look. 

"This seems to be the consequence of his good deed." Sehun said. "Chanyeol and Soomi confirmed dating after Transmit leaked photos make their way to CEO of 365 Entertainment.'

"Holy shit." Chanyeol heaved a heavy sigh. "Doesn't everyone know that Transmit is notorious for posting about dating scandals? I mean, that photo could be anyone. It looks photoshopped as hell, too." 

"No one said Lee was smart, that's for sure. Transmit could post about someone dating a fucking egg and the fans would eat that shit up." Sehun closed his phone and put it in his pocket. 

"What are you going to do?" Baekhyun asked. 

"Is there anything I can do?" Chanyeol questioned. "This is a total invasion of privacy."

Baekhyun couldn't help the curiosity eating at him. He took out his phone and typed in 'Soomi Chanyeol dating' and his screen was immediately filled with articles and videos. 

"What are you looking at?" Chanyeol asked Baekhyun. 

"Look at all of this. People are speculating your Instagram posts at this point." Baekhyun handed his phone to Chanyeol. "It's ridiculous. When a company condones a couple, it usually means it's a scandal. We've seen what happens when secret couples get exposed." 

"I feel so trapped. I can't even do anything about it." Chanyeol set Baekhyun's phone down. 

"Sorry, I know it doesn't help looking at it. I shouldn't have showed it to you." Baekhyun apologetically spoke. 

"It's not your fault, Baek." Chanyeol rest a comforting hand on Baekhyun's knee and pat it. "Don't worry about it. I should be worried about you."

Sehun looked up from his phone and at Chanyeol and Baekhyun. He smirked to himself and let out a light chuckle before resuming the video on his phone. 

...

Oasis arrived in Jeju around nine in the evening and were hauled off to their hotel immediately. Once they got to their hotel, they relaxed onto the bed closest to the window

"You doing alright?" Sehun asked, laying on his side to look at Baekhyun. The three of them were a little cramped, sprawled out on one bed and all, but they could never get tired of each other's company. 

"No, but I will be. Thanks." Baekhyun lightly smiled. "You know what will make me feel better, though? Room service." 

"Gotcha." Chanyeol reached to the nightstand to take the menu. He handed it to Baekhyun. 

"When on Jeju Island, one must have Okdom-gui and Galchiguk, right?" Baekhyun glanced up at his band mates from the menu. 

"And kkwong-memil guksu please!" Sehun raised his hand up. 

"Sounds good. Let me order and we can watch a stupid movie while we wait." 

As promised, they did watch the most poorly budgeted movie and ate their meals together. Once the first movie was over, Sehun and Chanyeol took a trip to the vending machine before coming back with snacks. They found a new movie that one of their fellow idols from 365 Entertainment was in and watched it. 

The trio opted for sleep after, so they could be awake in time to get ready for the funeral in the morning. 

...

The morning was slow. They took their time getting ready and made a pit-stop on the way to purchase flowers and Baekhyun got a gift for his friend's mother. 

When they entered the hall of an upscale hotel where the funeral would be held, they tried to be as inconspicuous as possible. This wasn't about them, it was about the family that had a huge loss. 

As soon as Baekho's mother saw Baekhyun, she ran up to him and enveloped him into a hug. 

Baekho's mother looked so much like Baekho. They had the same energetic eyes and mouths curved up into a smile. She was youthful and bright, much like her son. 

"Baekhyun, I am so happy to see you." Mrs. Kim sobbed into Baekhyun's shoulder before pulling away. "Thank you for coming." 

"Thank you for thinking of me." Baekhyun said. He ushered to the two taller men behind him. "This is Sehun and the giant is Chanyeol."

"It is a pleasure to meet you two." Mrs. Kim said. "Baekhyun is such a good boy, so I am sure you two must be a delight, as well. I've known him since he was little." 

That was information Baekhyun neglected to tell them, so Sehun and Chanyeol were not aware. They exchanged a look.

"Really? We didn't know that." Sehun said. "Baekhyun doesn't tell us much." He joked.

Baekhyun wasn't one to talk much about his life before becoming a trainee. It was nice to hear more about it, Chanyeol thought. 

"Mrs. Kim was like a second mother to me." Baekhyun reached for her hand. He remembered the gift he got here and took the bag from Chanyeol to hand it to her. "This is for you."

Mrs. Kim took the bag and smiled warmly at Baekhyun. "Thank you so much. You didn't have to do that." She glanced to Sehun, who was holding the flowers. 

"These are for you, too." Sehun extended his arms to show her the bouquets. 

"Thank you. If you wouldn't mind putting them on the table just over there," Baekho's mother pointed to a table covered in a light yellow cloth, "I would appreciate it."

"Of course." Sehun said. He nudged Chanyeol to indicate for him to follow. "Let's give them some time to chat."

Chanyeol and Sehun set down the flowers and leaned against the wall. Luckily, not many people had arrived yet, so they weren't drawing much attention. 

"Why do you think Baekhyun neglects to tell us a lot about his past?" Chanyeol asked.

Sehun shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. Maybe it brings back bad memories or something." 

"Still, we are always here for him. I mean, I had no idea he went that far back with Baekho." Chanyeol adjusted his haphazardly done bowtie. 

"Sounds like you're jealous." Sehun smirked at Chanyeol. 

"What? No. Why would I be jealous?" Chanyeol questioned in an accusatory tone. 

"I was joking." Sehun leaned his head back against the wall. "It's not like I was saying they were dating or anything." 

"You think they were dating?" Chanyeol's eyes widened in surprise. "That's weird if they were."

"Why would it be weird if they were?" Sehun asked, tone once more defensive. 

"Two guys." Chanyeol sucked on his teeth. 

Sehun rolled his eyes. "God, you guys are so delusional." He stopped leaning on the wall and smoothed down the back of his hair. "I'm going to check on Baekhyun." 

...

The funeral went smoothly. Afterwards, the trio stayed at the recession for a few hours before going back to their hotel and changing. Their flight wasn't until the evening, so they put on casual clothes to explore the island. 

Chanyeol and Baekhyun were done getting ready first.

"Hey," Sehun pulled a shirt over his torso, "I have to stop by somewhere and get something my mom asked me for, but I will meet you guys at the beach in a bit."

Chanyeol and Baekhyun looked at one another before averting their attention to Sehun. 

"Sure." Baekhyun said. "I'll send you our location when we get there." 

Chanyeol and Baekhyun made their way to the beach and walked on the sand. 

"Are you cold?" Chanyeol asked. "You look like you're shivering."

"No, I'm okay." Baekhyun held his arms close to his chest. 

"No you're not. Here." Chanyeol stopped walking and removed his maroon jacket. He helped Baekhyun put it on and pulled the hood over Baekhyun's head. The fur lining the inside of the hood nearly matched the color of Baekhyun's hair. "I promise I don't need it." 

"Thanks, Yeol." Baekhyun looped his arm with Chanyeol's. "Thank you for coming here with me. You sacrificed your vacation time for me." 

"I'd do it again in a heartbeat." Chanyeol responded. "I mean it, Baekhyun. Seeing you sad it the worst." 

They walked through the sand, upwards slightly to find a bench to sit on. The sea breeze sent their hair flying into all different types of directions, so getting a bit further away was much more convenient. 

After sitting down, Chanyeol turned to Baekhyun.

"Why didn't you tell us that you knew Baekho for that long?" Chanyeol asked. "I had no idea."

Baekhyun scratched his head in thought. "I just didn't think it was that important, I guess."

"It is. There is so much about you I feel like I don't know." Chanyeol said. "Want to talk about it? Maybe it will give you closure."

Baekhyun was about to say no, but the look on Chanyeol's face made him want to tell him. 

"Baekho started off as a neighbor of mine. We were always really close. When my parents were going through their divorce, I stayed at their home for about a month. It was really messy at home and Mrs. Kim convinced my mom to let me stay with them. After the divorce, my mother was never the same and my father had moved to the United States, so I spent even more time there. They are such good people." Baekhyun messed with the zipper on the jacket as he spoke. 

"I had no idea your parents were divorced. I'm so sorry for never asking." Chanyeol frowned.  "I guess I'm just surprised that you never mentioned your childhood friend. I know I talk about Yixing to you all of the time, so I neglected asking you." 

"Well, we kind of stopped talking for a little but when I switched to become a trainee at 365 Entertainment instead of training with him." Baekhyun said. 

"Oh, he was mad you left him?" Chanyeol questioned. 

Baekhyun shook his head. "No, he was happy for me. It's just that," He sighed, "The night before...Baekho asked me something. He asked what I would do if there was something so different about me that made people think I was strange. He asked if I would bottle it up and conform to societal norms, or own it. I told him that I would own who I was as a person and people would have to accept me for who I was. He thanked me for the advice and, well, he kissed me. I thought it was a joke and I played it off, but something in his expression made me feel wary. I kind of blew him off after that and I think that is when he needed me the most. Maybe if it wasn't for the advice I gave him, he wouldn't hav-" 

Chanyeol cut him off. "If you're about to say what I think you are, you should stop. Don't put the blame on yourself. You didn't cause him to be bullied and you didn't know what to do. Please don't think you had any role in what happened, Baekhyun." 

Baekhyun looked up to meet Chanyeol's eyes, tears brimming on his waterline.

'Thanks for listening. I don't mean to pour my heart out to you." Baekhyun sniffled. 

Chanyeol took Baekhyun's smaller hands into his. "Never apologize for talking about yourself." He paused. "Was it weird?" Chanyeol finally asked in a quieter tone. 

"Was what weird?" Baekhyun asked. 

"You know...when Baekho kissed you. Was it weird?" Chanyeol repeated.

Baekhyun pondered before he answered. "You know, surprisingly not. I thought it would be stranger, but it really wasn't. It's been a long time since he kissed me, but I don't remember being grossed out."

"Sorry for asking. I know I probably made you uncomfortable."

"You didn't." Baekhyun shook his head. "Being raised the way I was and, especially living in Seoul, I felt like my reaction would have been repulsion. I don't know what's wrong with me."

"Maybe you...liked him?" Chanyeol cautiously suggested. 

Baekhyun was silent for an unsettling amount of time before opening his mouth to speak and then closing it. 

"You know," Baekhyun finally said, "Maybe I did. I don't know. This is all so confusing." He released a deep breath. "Would you treat me differently if I did? What would you do if something like that happened?"

"Well, I don't know." Chanyeol lied. "I have never kissed a guy, so I can't really say what I would or wouldn't do." 

Baekhyun nodded. "I understand."

"I mean, I can try and then we can see how I would feel about it." Chanyeol released Baekhyun's hands and rest his arm on the top of the bench, behind Baekhyun. 

"Try what?" Baekhyun furrowed his brow in curiosity. 

"This." Chanyeol said. He took Baekhyun's chin in  between his index finger and thumb to tilt Baekhyun's head up and placed a gentle kiss on Baekhyun's lips. He let their lips touch for a few moments longer before releasing and watching Baekhyun's dazed expression. 

Just as Baekhyun was about to say something, his phone rang and caused him to jump in his seat. 

Baekhyun answered and put it on speaker. 

"Hey, where are you guys? I'm at the beach you mentioned, but I don't see you!" Sehun said, voice cutting out from the winds whipping into the speaker. 

"Oh, uh," Baekhyun turned around to look for a landmark, "You see the boulder filled with herons? There's a bench under it and we're there." 

"I see a boulder, but it's filled with some ugly looking birds." Sehun responded. 

"Hey, asshole, you're on speaker. They can hear you." Baekhyun frowned. "Those birds are the herons." 

"Ah, gotcha." Sehun said. "Excuse me, I gotta get past your ugly asses. Thanks." Sehun said. Baekhyun could hear his voice coming from above them. He stood up to wave to Sehun. 

Sehun hung up and hopped the railing to greet them. 

"Hey. Sorry that took so long." Sehun ran a hand through his hair. "My mom is taking care of Vivi right now, so I don't want to skimp out on getting her the gift." 

"It's all good." Chanyeol stood up. "Want to get some coffee or something while we wait for our flight?" He asked. 

"Sure." Sehun said. 

The trio walked to a local cafe, except Baekhyun was trailing behind them quite a distance away. 

"I feel so badly for him." Sehun half turned to indicate he was talking about Baekhyun. "Seems pretty upset still."

Chanyeol pocketed his hands. "That, uh, might actually be because of me. Can you keep a secret?" He asked. 

"Of course, I do it on the daily for myself." Sehun chuckled. "Shoot."

"He was telling me about his relationship with Baekho and well, one thing led to another and I kissed him." 

"About damn time!" Sehun grinned. 

"What?" Chanyeol asked.

"Nothing." Sehun quickly responded. "Anyway, explain please."

"Well, nothing else really. You called right after. I don't think it meant anything." Chanyeol said. "He asked me if I would treat him differently if he liked a guy before."

"And you said what?" Sehun pressed.

"I said I didn't know because I had never kissed a guy before and then that was when I kissed him." Chanyeol said. 

"That is smooth. Damn, Chanyeol, look at you. Granted, if you were so curious about kissing guys, you could have just tried on me." Sehun winked. 

"Gross!" Chanyeol playfully shoved Sehun. 

Sehun laughed. "What did you think? Not bad, right?" 

Chanyeol send a confusing smirk to Sehun. "Uh, not at all, actually. It feels wrong to think that way, though. I shouldn't be so okay with it."

"Maybe you should talk to him." Sehun suggested. 

"Maybe I should."

...

Luck was not on Chanyeol's side apparently. Baekhyun began to avoid him like the plague. He was fine with Sehun, but he would be short and avoid any contact with Chanyeol. He switched seats on the plane to avoid being next to Chanyeol and went straight to his room once they got back to their dorms. 

At their meeting with Mr. Lee the next day, Baekhyun didn't show up. He claimed he was sick and couldn't make it. Instead, only Chanyeol and Sehun had to listen to Mr. Lee rave about the PR they were getting from going to the funeral.

"It was the best idea you've ever had!" Jinwoo had said to Sehun. 

After the meeting, Chanyeol sent a quick text to Baekhyun before being swooped away by the producers in the company. The next few days had them busy. At practice, Baekhyun left immediately after. Chanyeol would have followed, but Jinwoo had a surprise photoshoot for him with  Soomi. Instead of being there for Baekhyun, he had to wrap his arms around someone he couldn't care less about. 

"So," Soomi cracked open one eye while getting her eyeshadow done to look at Chanyeol, "Where are you going to take me?"

"Huh?" Chanyeol questioned, nearly choking on a cloud of hairspray. 

"For a proper date." Soomi chuckled. "Where will you take me? You didn't think we were going to go back to your dorm and eat KFC, did you?"

Chanyeol massaged at his temple, only to have his hand swatted away by the hair stylist. "I didn't have anything planned. I didn't even know the company was setting this up. Us, I mean."

"With my encouragement." Soomi smirked. "You're hot, I'm hot. Everyone will be envious." She tucked her hair behind her ear and closed her eyes.

"Wait, you chose me?" Chanyeol asked. "Why me?"

"I didn't have many options, no offense." Soomi shooed away the makeup artist and stood up. She sauntered over to stand in front of Chanyeol and crossed her arms. "Sehun's hot, yeah, but it was between you and Baekhyun and I would rather end my career than be with that freak."

"That freak?" Chanyeol quirked a brow. "He happens to be my best friend and band mate." 

"Yeah, yeah." Soomi waved the comment off. "He's obnoxious. You know I went to high school with him, right? He was a nerd; not star material. I can't believe we're in the same industry. He was super reserved and only hung out with that kid that killed himself. They were losers--a match made in heaven. I really can't stand him." 

"Pretty sure I gathered the fact you disliked him without you having to say it. Did he actually ever do anything to you?" Chanyeol was doubtful Baekhyun had. 

"He was just annoying. He was always polite and I could tell that he didn't mean it. He tried to be so good, but I saw right through it. Plus, I think he had the hots for me until those gay rumors. Anyway, can we stop talking about him?" Soomi pouted. "I'm bored." 

...

They finished the photoshoot and Chanyeol went back to the dorm to wash out the questionable amount of hairspray in his hair. Unfortunately, Soomi latched onto Chanyeol's arm and went back with him to his dorm. 

Chanyeol opened the door to the apartment and saw Sehun grabbing his wallet from their kitchen table.

"Hey, I'm going to meet a friend for coffee. You want anything while I'm--oh." Sehun's hand froze over his wallet when he saw Soomi. 

"Hi, Sehun." Soomi tossed her raven hair over her shoulder. 

Sehun rolled his eyes. "Hi, Soomi." 

Soomi purposely leaned over the kitchen counter and rest her elbows on the marble top. "You've been working out a lot more, haven't you? I can tell."

"As much as I usually do." Sehun answered in a bored tone. He looked past her at Chanyeol, who offered Sehun an expression of desperation. 

"We should work out together sometime." Soomi flirtatiously said. 

"No thanks." Sehun forced a smile at her before looking back at Chanyeol once more. "Oh yeah, Chan! I forgot to tell you that the huge ass spider we saw earlier is still on the loose and I think it had babies when I tried to hit it. I mean, it's crazy. I saw hundreds of baby spiders going into your room. I would be careful if I were you. They're probably all over your clothes and shit. Yikes, am I right?" He grinned. 

"Fuck that, no thanks." Soomi shot up from her position. "We can spend some time at my place soon. This is disgusting. Don't even think about coming over unless you buy new clothes. I don't want that infestation too."

"Might be a while. His credit card was stolen." Sehun shrugged. "This just hasn't been poor Chanyeol's week."

"Can't you lend him money? I was thinking we could have a romantic dinner tomorrow and then a movie at my place. Maybe some wine?" Soomi ran a manicured finger down Chanyeol's bicep. 

"My card was stolen, too. Can you believe it? I mean, _what_ are the odds?" Sehun forced a chuckle. 

Soomi rolled her eyes. "Whatever." She said before yanking Chanyeol down by the collar to plant a kiss on the corner of his lips. "See you." 

Soomi sauntered out of the apartment, leaving a stunned Chanyeol and Sehun in her wake. 

"There is bleach under the sink if you need to clean your mouth." Sehun picked up his phone from the counter. "I'm really going to be late now."

"Yeah..." Chanyeol slowly said. "See you." 

Once Sehun left, Chanyeol showered and threw a towel around his waist before going into his room and closing the door. He pulled on a pair of boxers and sweatpants before sitting in his desk chair and opening his lyric book. 

He heard a knock on his bedroom door and felt his heart sink. Did Soomi let herself in? 

He stood up and kept his hand on the handle as he spoke. "Soomi, you don't want to come in here. Spiders--they're everywhere. I don't think I can even open the door." 

"It's not Soomi." Baekhyun's voice spoke from the other side of the door. 

Chanyeol swung the door open far too quickly and stared at Baekhyun. 

"Remember when you kissed me?" Baekhyun said, determination on his face. 

"Yeah, look, I'm sorry." Chanyeol frowned. "You were vulnerable and it was in poor taste."

"Do it again." Baekhyun said. 

"What?" Chanyeol stood dumbfounded. 

"You heard me." Baekhyun slowly approached Chanyeol. 

Chanyeol didn't need to be told twice. He practically launched himself at Baekhyun and wrapped his arms around Baekhyun's small frame. He leaned into Baekhyun and slotted their lips together. Baekhyun eagerly kissed Chanyeol back. Chanyeol kicked the door closed with his heel and cupped Baekhyun's jaw, so he could kiss him deeper. 

"Why did you come now?" Chanyeol asked in between kisses.

"Soomi fucking pissed me off. I saw her kiss you and I couldn't wait." Baekhyun responded. 

Chanyeol chuckled before kissing Baekhyun once more on the lips before he moved to Baekhyun's jawline. He kissed down to his neck and pulled down the collar of Baekhyun's sweater to kiss and bite at his collarbones. 

Chanyeol slowly backed them up to the bed. Surprisingly, Baekhyun pushed Chanyeol down and crawled over him to leave marks on Chanyeol's exposed chest. 

Chanyeol's grip tightened on Baekhyun's waist when he felt the smaller catch the sensitive skin of his collarbones. Baekhyun mouthed at every inch of Chanyeol's chest before he made his way back to the taller's lips. Chanyeol quickly deepened the kiss by licking at the seam of Baekhyun's lips. Baekhyun happily granted Chanyeol permission and Chanyeol pulled Baekhyun to his chest, so they were flush together. 

Chanyeol's hands traveled under Baekhyun's sweater and he felt Baekhyun shudder under his touch. 

"It's okay." Chanyeol kissed the tip of Baekhyun's nose before pulling at the hem of his sweater. 

Baekhyun sat up momentarily to remove the sweater before pulling Chanyeol close once more. "It's okay." He repeated. 

Baekhyun was sitting in between Chanyeol's legs and Chanyeol's heart fell at how vulnerable and confused Baekhyun looked. He seemed unsure, yet determined. Scared and small, as if he was trying to hide himself. 

When Chanyeol saw a tear slip from one of Baekhyun's eyes, concern overwhelmed him. 

"Hey," Chanyeol put his hands on Baekhyun's biceps and rubbed circles into his skin, "What's wrong?" 

"I'm scared. I'm so fucking scared, Chanyeol." Baekhyun quietly spoke. 

"Why are you scared?" Chanyeol asked, trying to meet Baekhyun's gaze. 

"Everything is so confusing." Baekhyun said. "Is this a mistake?" He asked. "What are we doing? You have a girlfriend."

"I didn't get a choice with her. It wasn't up to me, you know that." Chanyeol slid one hand down Baekhyun's arm to search for his hand to hold. 

"Is this wrong?" Baekhyun whispered. 

Chanyeol honestly wasn't sure if it was wrong or not. It felt right, that was all he knew. Was he being selfish and was he still using Baekhyun in a time of weakness? What would come of what they were doing? Nothing, probably. It would just inconvenience Baekhyun in the future. They had an image to upkeep and they weren't gay, they couldn't be. Whatever ideas were in Chanyeol's head recently were wrong. Maybe Soomi wasn't as bad as he thought. 

"Did you love Baekho?" Chanyeol blurted out. "Romantically? Did you love him?"

"Why are you bringing that up?" Baekhyun was a bit taken aback.

"Are you using me for some closure or something that you didn't get with him?" Chanyeol hated what he was saying. He knew it would hurt Baekhyun but, ultimately, it would save Baekhyun. Chanyeol couldn't care less about what happened to himself, but he didn't want Baekhyun to get hurt. 

"Excuse me?" Baekhyun moved away. "What are you trying to say? How dare you." 

"Well, you can't get it with him now and you're taking advantage of me, aren't you?" Chanyeol said. 

Baekhyun let out a bitter laugh. "I genuinely hope you're  joking because what you're saying is extremely fucked up."

"I'm not gay. Maybe Soomi was right about you. Maybe you are, but I'm not." Chanyeol sat cross-legged on his bed. 

"You know what, Chanyeol?" Baekhyun stood up and made his way to the door. "Fuck you." He threw the door open and shut it hard enough to knock a photo off of Chanyeol's wall. 

Chanyeol collapsed back onto his bed. He was an idiot. 

....

Baekhyun forgot his sweater in Chanyeol's room and the last thing he wanted to do was retrieve it. He threw on a hoodie from his closet and marched out of the dorm. The November weather wasn't doing any favors for him, especially when it started raining during his walk. 

"Fuck." Baekhyun said to himself, tears blending with the rain. He looked at his surroundings to see a coffee shop that he didn't recognize. He ran into it for shelter and mentally thanked the owners when he felt the heaters doing their job in the shop. 

"Baekhyun? Oh my God, you're soaked. You're going to get sick." Sehun sat up from a small table where he was sat next to a tall brunette male. 

"Sorry, Sehun. Sit back down, I'm fine. Enjoy your coffee." Baekhyun said. 

"Fuck the coffee. I'm worried about you." Sehun turned to wave apologetically at the other person at the table before sitting Baekhyun in a booth on the other side of the shop. "What did Chanyeol do?"

"How did you know it was Chanyeol?" Baekhyun brushed his damp bangs from his eyes. 

"Lucky guess. What's up, Byun?"

"I'm just an idiot, I guess." Baekhyun bit the inside of his cheek to hold back his tears. "I opened up to him about a lot of stuff and he used it against me. I saw Soomi kiss him and, after she left, I went to his room and kissed him." 

"Uh-huh." Sehun's eyes landed on the forming bruises on Baekhyun's neck. 

"He said I only kissed him because I need closure about Baekho. Baekho kissed me years ago and I may have had feelings for him. Chanyeol said that I was trying to get with him because I can't with Baekho anymore and Soomi was right about some of the nasty things she said about me."

Sehun took off his leather jacket and put it over Baekhyun's shoulders. "I'm going to kill Chanyeol." He said. "I'm so sorry he said that to you." 

"It's not your fault. I think I'm going to stay at the studio tonight. Please don't tell anyone, alright?" Baekhyun said. 

"Of course. Let me know if you need anything." Sehun pat Baekhyun on the back. He purchased Baekhyun a coffee and Sehun's friend gave him his umbrella. 

Baekhyun arrived at a vacant studio at their company and found some blankets in the supply closet from their overnight live they did a few months ago. He threw them on the ground and laid down on top of them. 

He couldn't blame Chanyeol for what he said. He was stupid for propositioning his best friend like that. Still, something about felt so...domestic. It was almost normal to him. Baekhyun felt selfish. He couldn't do that again; he wouldn't do it again. His mind was all over the place because of what happened with Baekho, that was all it was. It was best to forgive and forget and maybe a little bit of time away from Chanyeol would be for the best. 

Baekhyun felt his phone vibrate and opened it to see a message from Chanyeol

_From: Yeol_

I'm sorry. You're my friend and I shouldn't have said that. 

_To: Yeol_

I'm sorry, too. I was just messed up from what happened with Baekho and I said things I didn't mean. Let's just forget and continue being friends. 

_From: Yeol_

Good idea. 

Baekhyun threw his phone down on the blanket next to him. He closed his eyes and his mind wandered. All he could think about was Chanyeol. Chanyeol was his protector and meant more to him than anyone ever could. He loved Chanyeol, only as a friend, of course. 

...

"I was surprised to get a call from you." Soomi sat down at her kitchen table. 

"Yeah, well, me too." Chanyeol shrugged. "Mind if I stay the night for the next few days?" He asked. 

It had been three days since the incident with Baekhyun. Aside from their practices, they hadn't seen each other. Sehun had mentioned that Baekhyun stopped by the dorm when Chanyeol wasn't there, but he didn't go into too much detail. Chanyeol figured Baekhyun needed some alone time, and his last resort was staying with Soomi. 365 Entertainment was having an event that night and Mr. Lee wanted him to appear with Soomi anyway, so it worked out. 

Soomi shrugged. "That's fine. I need to start getting ready for tonight."

"The event isn't for another three hours." Chanyeol said. 

"I have to do my makeup." Soomi rolled her eyes. She looked as if she already had a full face of makeup on, but Chanyeol kept his mouth shut. 

Chanyeol passed the time by playing games on his phone until he heard his ringtone fill the room and the caller ID photo he had for Sehun lit up his screen. 

Chanyeol picked up and held his phone to his ear. 

"You going tonight?" Sehun asked. 

"Yeah, I'll be there." Chanyeol said. 

"Nice. Where did you go, by the way? I brought you some bubble tea and you weren't here." Chanyeol could hear Sehun's disappointment in his tone. 

"I'm staying at Soomi's apartment for a little bit." Chanyeol hesitated before answering. 

"Oh." Sehun shortly said. "Alright. Have fun with that thing. I tried to disinfect the dorm after she left, but I can still smell that fucking perfume she drenches herself in." 

"She's not...that bad." Chanyeol sighed. "She's good for me." 

"Okay, make sure you get your balls out of her purse before you head on over, alright?" Sehun said. "I can smell the bullshit in your words." 

Chanyeol huffed. "Is, uh, is Baekhyun going tonight?" He tried to change thee subject.

"No idea. I haven't seen too much of him." Sehun responded. "Maybe I'll ask him to be my date for tonight. Who knows." He said in a nonchalant manner. "I just hate seeing him sad. I can't believe someone would hurt him."

Something about the idea of Sehun bringing Baekhyun as a date pissed Chanyeol off. 

"You're not serious about the date, right? You're both guys." Chanyeol said. "Jinwoo would have a fit." 

"Relax, I wasn't being serious. I love Baekhyun, but not like that. I think he is already in love with someone else, anyway." Sehun said. "Anyway, gotta go! See you later."

Sehun hung up, leaving Chanyeol dumbfounded. Baekhyun was in love with someone? Sehun probably meant Baekho, right?  That had to be it. Still, Chanyeol felt a knot in his stomach, almost like he was jealous. Jealous of what? Baekhyun loving someone? Well, it shouldn't matter--it's not like Chanyeol was in love with Baekhyun, right? 

Wait...

Fuck. 

Chanyeol ran his hands down his face. When Chanyeol first met Baekhyun, he felt an immediate attraction towards him. He wanted to be Baekhyun's friend, he wanted to protect Baekhyun, spend time with Baekhyun, joke with him, take him out, touch him, kiss him. 

God dammit. He was in love with Baekhyun. 

That's okay. It's fine. Maybe it would pass. Granted, it hadn't in all of the time he had known Baekhyun, but now that he was aware, maybe he could fix it. He could keep himself as far away from Baekhyun as possible to avoid anything happening. 

He would act purely professional. No one could know how he felt about Baekhyun. 

Chanyeol arrived at the event dressed in black slacks, and a silk gray button-down paired with a skinny tie. 

Soomi had changed out of her black dress to opt for a matching gray dress. Her hair was styled to one side and she looked beautiful. 

Chanyeol wasn't looking at her, though. He was looking at the figured in the doorway. 

Baekhyun's hair was a dark blonde and the silver chains around his next complimented it well. He was adorned in a black turtleneck with a blue suit jacket thrown over and similar colored slacks. He looked incredible and Chanyeol couldn't tear his eyes off of him. 

Chanyeol watched Baekhyun cautiously look around before seeing Sehun and breaking out into a smile. He watched Baekhyun envelop Sehun into a hug and walk through the crowd. 

"Hey." Soomi elbowed Chanyeol and took him out of his thoughts. "I'm thirsty." 

"Alright." Chanyeol said dismissively. 

"Um, get me something?" Soomi elbowed him again. 

Chanyeol sighed. "Fine." He pushed through the crowds of people and made his way to the bar, where he saw Lee Jinwoo with a glass of whiskey in hand. 

"Chanyeol! There you are. I was trying to find you. I already told Sehun and Baekhyun, but I need you guys at the stage in five minutes for an announcement." Jinwoo lazily sloshed around the amber liquid in his glass. 

"Sure." Chanyeol said. "I'll be right over." 

Once again, Chanyeol weaved through the crowd to the stage. Sehun and Baekhyun were already standing near it, laughing with each other. 

Sehun saw Chanyeol first. 

"Hey, Chan! There you are!" Sehun beamed at the red head. 

"You took the words right out of my mouth." Soomi said behind Chanyeol, startling him. She locked arms with Chanyeol and kissed his cheek. "Where is that drink I asked for?"

Chanyeol wiped the red lipstick he knew was on his cheek before unhooking his arm and crossing them to his chest. "Lee told me to come here. The bar is not far, if you want something."

Soomi pouted. "You're supposed to do that for me." She whined. 

Chanyeol shrugged. 

"Can you get it for me?" Soomi turned to Baekhyun and smirked. 

Chanyeol looked at Baekhyun to notice he was looking back at him. Baekhyun seemed to snap out of his thoughts and he averted his attention from Chanyeol to Soomi. 

"Sorry, what?" Baekhyun asked.

"Drink, for me. Go get it?" Soomi grinned. 

"Uh, he's busy." Sehun put an arm protectively around Baekhyun's shoulders. "We have to go on stage about," He paused to look at his watch, "Now." 

Chanyeol followed Sehun, who was dragging Baekhyun, onto the stage and watched Sehun take the microphone. 

"Hello, we are Oasis!" Sehun said, causing everyone to look at them. "We wanted to announce our collaboration with Choi Taeyong on our repackage. It is going to be different than anything we have ever produced, so we hope that you will look forward to it!" 

Well, that was news to Chanyeol. Taeyong was rather new to 365 Entertainment. He wasn't part of the company, but he had helped do background music and choreography for some of the idols. He made his career for himself as an underground rapper and one of the best dancers in the country. His following was huge. Needless to say, the collaboration was a smart move on the company's part. 

Chanyeol tuned out most of the other information Sehun was giving out until the microphone was handed to him. 

"Oh, well, thank you everyone for your continued support. It has been an honor for us and we hope you continue to support us, as we will support you." 

"Great job, boys." Mr. Lee spoke from below the stage. "How about you preform a sample of the work you showed to me last week?"

"Really?" Chanyeol's face lit up. He had been working on a rap with Sehun, but had yet to add vocals for Baekhyun. He didn't think Jinwoo had an interest in the song. 

"Of course. I even prepared a guitar for you." 

One of the stagehands brought out a guitar and Chanyeol and Sehun looked expectantly to each other. 

"Well, I guess this is winging it, huh?" Sehun whispered to Chanyeol. 

"Guess so."

...

Baekhyun stepped off the stage to watch the performance. Chanyeol was glowing. Baekhyun knew how much of his heart he put into his music, and he was proud to see that he could showcase his talents to everyone.

Baekhyun's heart swelled when Chanyeol hit the high notes in his song. That was one thing he really admired about Chanyeol; he had rapping and singing abilities. Baekhyun wished he could have half of the skill the taller had. 

"Don't start drooling." Soomi said from next to him. 

"What are you talking about?" Baekhyun questioned. 

"Oh, I'm not stupid." Soomi scoffed. "You're practically losing it at the sight of him.: She said. "You know what the best part is? I get to have him and you don't. You love him, but I get to fuck him." 

"I'm not in lov-" Baekhyun paused. Somehow, he couldn't get the words out. 

Soomi grinned. "See? That's what I thought. You do love him."

So what if Baekhyun did love Chanyeol? It's not like he would do anything about it, or that Chanyeol loved him back. 

"Just stay away from him." Soomi sighed. "It's for the better; for all of us." 

Baekhyun hated that Soomi was right. He did need to stay away and maybe the thoughts clouding his mind would go away. 

"You've always been so fucking weird. Just because you're an," Soomi held up air quotes, "Idol doesn't mean people actually like you. People don't like Oasis for you, I promise. Sometimes, I wonder what the company was thinking with you. It's never too late to quit, you know." He crossed her arms before looking at the stairs for the stage. "Hey, babe!" 

Chanyeol looked from Soomi to Baekhyun. Baekhyun quickly walked away after making eye contact with Chanyeol. 

"Where did Baek go?" Sehun followed down the stairs a bit after Chanyeol. 

"Who cares?" Soomi said. "Let's get cocktails." 

It ended up taking them around an hour to get to the bar after talking to various idols. Sehun sat to Chanyeol's right, and Soomi to his left. 

Out of the corner of Chanyeol's eye, he saw Baekhyun sitting at a booth with a drink in hand. Next to him was none other that Choi Taeyong. 

The brunette was grinning at Baekhyun, who must have been laughing at something he said. Silver lined his ears and glimmered in the lights of the bar. He had a slim fitting suit on and Chanyeol had to admit that he looked good. 

Baekhyun must have thought so, too, with the way he was practically hanging onto the rapper. 

"Baekhyun looks like he's having fun. Good for him." Sehun smiled. "I was worried he may have been upset or something. Taeyong is handsome, isn't he?"

Chanyeol slowly nodded. "I guess."

"The thing I admire about Taeyong is that he is not afraid to be himself. He is powerful on his own, so he doesn't listen to the bullshit that Jinwoo tells him to do because he's his own boss. I heard he was dating a guy from Japan until they broke up a few weeks ago." Sehun thanked the bartender when a bottle of beer was set in front of him. 

"A guy?" Chanyeol asked. 

"That's what the rumor is and he hasn't denied it. He makes his raps pretty gender neutral, so he has also gotten quite the following from the LGBT community." Sehun took a swig of his beer. 

'Huh." Chanyeol said. "Why don't people hate him for that? Seldom times, idols are open about their sexualities." 

"I guess because it hasn't been confirmed. He could easily deny it and claim his connections are purely because he likes skinship. That is what most idols do, anyway." Sehun responded. 

Chanyeol looked over at Baekhyun once more. He looked happy. He was glad someone wasn't disappointing Baekhyun like he was notorious for doing. 

"His hair looks bad." Soomi said, following Chanyeol's stare at Baekhyun. "He shouldn't bother you anymore, by the way." She stood up and grabbed the back of Chanyeol's neck harshly to kiss him. "I'll be back."

Once she left, Sehun pat Chanyeol's forearm. "Let me get you some vodka to cleanse your lips."

....

The last thing Baekhyun wanted to see was a news article about Soomi and Chanyeol. A week had passed since the event and the news was still blowing up with photos of them. Supposedly, they went on a date three days ago and photos were surfacing left and right. 

Baekhyun hadn't seen Chanyeol since the party. They had five days off and the other days were spent with Baekhyun recording his vocals for their tracks, since they already had Sehun and Chanyeol's.

They were all to meet at the studio around noon for their recording with Taeyong. Baekhyun was excited to work with Taeyong. They had spent a lot of time talking since they met and Baekhyun could confidently say he had a new friend. 

Baekhyun opened the door to the dorm when he heard a knock. Taeyong smiled broadly at him, a beanie tucked over his hair and large framed glasses slipping down his nose. 

"Ready to head over?" Taeyong asked. 

"Yep! Let me just grab my jacket. It's been so rainy lately." Baekhyun shook his head. 

"No kidding. That's why I did even bother with my hair." Taeyong laughed. 

Baekhyun slipped on his jacket before turning back to Taeyong. "You didn't bring a jacket?" 

"Nah, but it's cool. I came here straight from the gym, so I didn't prepare much." Taeyong answered. 

"Borrow one of mine!" Baekhyun ushered Taeyong in and he led him to his closet. "I think blue would look good on you." He took a navy blue jacket with a graphic design on the front off of the hanger and handed it to Taeyong. 

Taeyong slipped it over his head and politely bowed. "Thanks, Baekhyun."

"Of course, now let's head over." 

The two walked together and Baekhyun shielded the two of them with an umbrella. When they got to the studio, he retracted it and left it at the front of the building near security. 

"I think Sehun said they were in studio five." Baekhyun's finger hovered over the elevator button while he checked his text from Sehun. "Yep, five." He pressed the 'up' button and they waited patiently. 

Baekhyun and Taeyong arrived on the floor and to studio five. Sehun and Chanyeol were already there, both sprawled on the couches and on their phones. 

Taeyong politely bowed to the other members. "Hello."

"Hey, Taeyong!" Sehun set down his phone and greeted Taeyong. "You two were lucky, arriving at the same time."

"We actually met at the dorm." Baekhyun nodded. "I figured we could walk together, since he's still unfamiliar with the building."

"And Baekhyun kindly lent me this hoodie. I promise I won't forget to give it back and keep it as a token of our relationship." Taeyong joked. 

"Don't worry about it." Baekhyun waved the comment away. 

"Can we get to recording? Sorry for interrupting, but I have plans later." Chanyeol pocketed his phone in the back pocket of his jeans. Truthfully, he just got a sour taste in his mouth from seeing Taeyong and Baekhyun clicking so well. 

"Yeah, sure. Sorry about that. I'm just really excited to be working with you guys." Taeyong bowed apologetically. 

"Don't be sorry." Sehun grinned. "Let's get this show on the road."

...

To say that Taeyong's collaboration was good with Oasis would be an understatement. It was phenomenal. He worked well with them and they were efficient. 

"Do you guys want to get dessert after this? On me, of course." Taeyong fixed Baekhyun's hair as he spoke. 

"Only if it can be on me next time." Baekhyun smiled. 

"You guys go ahead. Bye." Chanyeol quickly left. He exited the studio as quickly as he could. 

"Fuck." Chanyeol groaned when he felt raindrops falling on his head. Luckily, there was a convenience store next to the studio and he bought an umbrella. 

Chanyeol walked to the Han River, in desperate need to clear his thoughts. What was he thinking? He was acting insane in the studio. He was still new to acknowledging that he loved another man, let alone not being straight. Honestly, he hated himself for it. He felt like he was doing something wrong; something unnatural. Why did he have to be abnormal? He was disgusting. Baekhyun didn't deserve to be mistreated. The guilt of accusing Baekhyun for loving a man when it was, in fact, Chanyeol that was projecting his feelings onto poor Baekhyun was eating away at him. 

Chanyeol didn't want to be around anyone but, mostly, he didn't want to be around Soomi. He went to her apartment to grab his things. 

"What are you doing?" Soomi asked, lifting her head up slightly from the couch. Her facemask began to slip off of her face, so she laid her head back down. 

"Grabbing my things. The spiders are gone." Chanyeol stuffed his belongings into his backpack. 

"I was actually thinking we could move in together." Soomi said. 

"Uh, let's talk about that another time." Chanyeol said. He left as quickly as he came and went back to the dorm. 

When he arrived, he saw Sehun, Taeyong, and Baekhyun playing video games in the living room. 

"Done with your plans?" Sehun spoke without looking away from the television. 

"Nah, I'm going to go work on some songs in my room." Chanyeol quickly walked to his room and closed the door. 

"Is he okay?" Taeyong asked. "Maybe I should go."

"You stay. I'll go talk to him." Sehun set down his controller on the couch and went to Chanyeol's room. 

"Chanyeol?" Sehun quietly knocked. "Can I come in?" 

"Yeah." Sehun thought he heard. He opened the door to see Chanyeol staring out the window of his room, watching the raindrops hit the surface.

"Got tired of Soomi?" Sehun joked. 

Chanyeol bitterly chuckled and turned around his chair to look at Sehun. 

Sehun sat at the edge of Chanyeol's bed and sighed. 

"You're a real idiot, you know that?" Sehun said. 

"I know I am, but why?" Chanyeol  quirked a brow.

"You hurt Baekhyun's feelings and start acting super distant and weird to him. You make Taeyong feel unwelcome and, honestly, it's so unlike you. I don't know why you have been acting so differently lately. I think a lot of people are catching on, as well. People have been taking photos of you when you aren't with us and there's now a rumor going around that you're leaving the group." Sehun crossed his arms. "To top it all off, you've been staying with Soomi. You know she bullied Baekhyun, right? Still does, too." 

Sehun tested Chanyeol's expression before speaking again. 

"She told him to leave Oasis and that's one of the nicer things she has said to him." Sehun said.

"You think I _want_ to be with her? You think I enjoy not being around him? Is that the idea you're getting because that isn't it." Chanyeol could feel his face getting hot. 

"Honestly, yeah. That is the idea I'm getting. Please, enlighten me on what it could really be." Sehun said.

"Because I love him!" Chanyeol exasperatedly said. "I love him and I hate myself for it. I can't be selfish with this. You know what would happen if he loved me back and people found out? What if the same thing that happened to Baekho happened to him? What if I was the reason something bad happened to him? This isn't some fairy tale where we can live happily ever after. This is the real world and this world is cruel. I'm scared, Sehun. I don't know why I feel this way and I shouldn't because it's wrong. I think I could only repress it for so many years." 

Sehun got up from the bed to kneel in front of Chanyeol and take his hands into his own. 

"Finally." Sehun sadly smiled. "I've known you for a long time, Park Chanyeol, and I know that the image you're putting out of yourself lately isn't you. You are a happy, go lucky guy, and that has been drained from you. The world is cruel, you're absolutely right. However, you're hurting yourself by holding back. You don't have to let the world know about you, but you could at least let the people closest to you know. If they are worth your time, they will accept you for who you are. Trust me, I would know. I know what it's like to hide things from the public eye." He pat Chanyeol's knee. "I'm not here to tear you down, I am here to support you and I'm really proud of you for telling me."

"Thank you, Sehun." Chanyeol pulled the younger up to envelop him into a hug. "What do I do about Soomi, then?" He asked. 

"You really think that she is faithful? I know for a fact that she's dating around. She tried hitting on my friend at the club a couple of days ago. It's only a matter of time that those photos of her 'cheating' get leaked. Lee won't keep you in a relationship if there is a scandal. Just say the word and I can get those images published within the hour."

"What would I do without you?" Chanyeol laughed. "Thank you again."

"Of course." Sehun stood up. "You get some rest. I love you, but you look like shit." 

Chanyeol lightly his Sehun's thigh. "Rude, but I am sure I do." 

"What did I tell you!" Mr. Lee slammed down a manila envelope and opened it up to reveal dozens of photos of Soomi with other men. "What is this?"

Baekhyun sat with Sehun and Chanyeol on the other side of the table, not saying a word. 

"What did you want me to do?" Soomi wiped away her running mascara. "I tried to seduce him, but he had no interest! This wasn't fair to me!" 

"Not fair?" Jinwoo scoffed. "What isn't fair is that I have to clean up your mess! You're so selfish. Did you not think about how this would hurt yours and Chanyeol's images?" 

"Make it seem like he cheated or broke up with me first, or something. I was just trying to make myself feel better after he hurt me! Yeah, do that." Soomi's rings made an obnoxious clanking sound when they came in contact with the meeting table.

"Why in the world would I do that? Chanyeol had nothing to do with your infidelity. This is on you, Jung Soomi. Maybe we should pull your next album." Jinwoo's frown deepened. 

Chanyeol basked in the fact that Jinwoo was defending him. 

"No, please don't." Soomi begged. "It's not my fault that he didn't treat me right."

"Enough. Leave. We will talk about this later." Jinwoo pointed at the door. 

When Soomi left, Jinwoo sat across from Oasis and smiled apologetically.

"My apologies. I thought she would handle that better." Jinwoo said. "I would also like to apologize once more for my actions as of late. As you know, my father has been putting a lot of stress on me and that is reflecting poorly on how I am handing things. I will try to get better, as well." 

Despite all of the things Jinwoo had said to them, Baekhyun couldn't help but feel sympathy for him. Jinwoo wasn't much older than them, yet he seemingly had the weight of the world on his shoulders. 

"And, Baekhyun," Jinwoo averted his attention to the blonde, "I know I handled the situation with your friend poorly. I am truly sorry for your loss." 

Baekhyun was taken aback by the apology. There was absolutely no excuse for the homophobia, but Baekhyun knew that the majority of people were also repulsed. Jinwoo was money and power hungry, luckily for Baekhyun, so he still had the opportunity to go to the funeral. 

"Anyway, I arranged a dinner for Oasis and Choi Taeyong for tonight. Until then, I would like for you to finalize the vocals and our choreographer hopes to get that practice dance recorded today for the repackage. Additionally, there will be a small photo shoot, so the stylists will come in and get your ready for tonight."

There was the classic Jinwoo they had come to love and hate. Always keeping them on their feet. 

The trio went to the studio and followed Jinwoo's instructions. They didn't have a chance to eat, partially because they were elbow deep in work, but mostly because Jinwoo didn't want them to have anything in their stomachs before a photoshoot. 

They used the showers in the building and changed into the clothes that were brought to them. They were given street wear fashion, some tops fashioning baseball teams from the states and some looking like jerseys themselves. 

After the first round, they changed into something more formal and Taeyong appeared to join in for the photoshoot. 

"Now, I want one of just Sehun and Chanyeol." The photographer said. 

Chanyeol and Sehun obliged and posed for the shots. 

"Now Baekhyun and Taeyong."

Baekhyun eyed Taeyong, who nodded at him. Taeyong leaned against the wall, one leg extended and the other bent at the knee. Baekhyun leaned his head on Taeyong's shoulder like the photographer asked and looked into the eye of the camera. 

"Good, good." The photographer said. "Now, lean your heads on one another." 

Once Baekhyun and Taeyong were finished, Sehun had a shot with Taeyong before the photographer called Chanyeol and Baekhyun over. 

"Last group shot, or else we will have too many for the magazine spread. I want Chanyeol to lay down, but prop himself up on his elbows and Baekhyun, you will rest your head on his thigh. Look seductively into the camera." 

The photographer got Chanyeol into position and Baekhyun sat in front of Chanyeol. He cautiously leaned back and rest his head on Chanyeol's thigh. 

Chanyeol brought his hand up to lightly rest against Baekhyun's neck. 

"Perfect, Chanyeol! Just like that." The photographer moved back and positioned his camera. "More seductive, Baekhyun. There, exactly." 

They were blinded by camera flashes before the photographer looked at the screen contently. 

"That's a wrap!" He said. "Thanks, guys."

Once the photographer left, Baekhyun got up first and helped Chanyeol up. 

"Good job! You could have seduced anyone with that look!" Taeyong laughed and threw his arm around Baekhyun's shoulders. "Let's go get some food." 

The drive to the restaurant was quick. What took long was finding a way to get it around the crowd of fans that flocked to the entrance of the restaurant.  

Taeyong hopped out first and screams roared from the fans outside. Taeyong extended his hand to help Baekhyun out. 

"Wait here," Taeyong let go of Baekhyun's hand to help Sehun out next, "I'll clear a path for us." 

After he helped Sehun, Taeyong extended his hand to Chanyeol, who pretended he didn't see it and got out himself. 

Taeyong closed the door and moved in front of Baekhyun. He held on lightly to Baekhyun's wrist and led him in through the crowd. 

"I have a feeling Jinwoo 'accidentally' let it slip where we would be going purely for publicity." Sehun said. 

"Wouldn't doubt it." Baekhyun answered. 

They were led to their table and Chanyeol was considering sitting next to Baekhyun until Taeyong swooped in and took the spot. 

It was going to be a long dinner. 

...

"Japan was wonderful." Taeyong said after taking a drink of his wine. "I miss it a lot, but being in Korea feels right, you know?" 

"I'm going to the bathroom. I'll be back." Chanyeol stood up and left. 

"Japan is really nice. I've always wanted to live there." Sehun grinned. "They seem a lot more open about things there."

"Oh, they are." Taeyong get down his glass. "I met my significant other there when I was starting out with my music career. I was young and in love and we ended up living there for a couple of years before moving here."

"I heard you also lived in the states, right?" Baekhyun asked. 

"Yeah, I did. I was born in Incheon, moved to Beijing when I was three, Canada when I was eight, the United States when I was twelve, and Japan when I was eighteen. Moved back here when I was twenty and I've been here for three years now." Taeyong smiled. "I've been all over the place. My significant other is Korean, but he---they," Taeyong paused, "Studied in the states for a while before moving to Japan for college."

"Wow, you two are world travelers." Sehun said. "I envy that." 

"When you work for yourself, no one can tell you what to do. I said, 'to hell with it' and did my own thing. I'm as happy as ever." Taeyong wiped at the condensation from his glass of water. "I'm glad that they love me enough to help me achieve my dreams and move with me to Korea."

Taeyong was right, wasn't he? Baekhyun was sick of living in the shadows. He was tired of being treated poorly. Taeyong's partner moved to a different country to be with him. People will do crazy things for love.

Chanyeol came back a few moments later, looking pale. 

"Are you alright?" Sehun set down his fork and looked at Chanyeol with a concerned expression. 

"Soomi is here." Chanyeol said. "She told me she's going to try and ruin me."

"What the hell is her problem?" Sehun looked around the restaurant. "Want me to talk to her?" 

"No, it's okay. Thanks, though." Chanyeol said. 

"I'm sorry about what happened." Taeyong frowned. "She sounds like the ex-girlfriend from hell." 

"Don't you mean publicity stunt from hell?" Chanyeol jokingly said in an attempt to lighten the mood. 

"Oh? You weren't really dating?" Taeyong questioned. 

Chanyeol shook his head.

"Classic move. To avoid a scandal, put an idol in a fake relationship." Sehun said.

"Remind me to never join a company." Taeyong rolled his eyes. 

Once dinner was over, Sehun sat up. 

"Well, I'm going to go pick up Vivi from my mother, since Jinwoo finally said I could have him at the dorms." Sehun gave a thumbs-up. "I'll come back early tomorrow, so Jinwoo doesn't kill me for leaving without permission."

"Can't wait to see Vivi again. You, you're alright." Chanyeol joked. 

Sehun playfully flipped him off before leaving. 

"I'll ride with you guys back to your dorm to see you off, then I'll call a cab from there." Taeyong said. 

"Are you sure?" Baekhyun said. "Isn't that inconvenient for you?" 

"It's not an issue." Taeyong said.

As Taeyong promised, he rode with them and even walked them up to their apartment. 

"Oh, before I forget." Taeyong opened up the messenger bag he had on his side and took out Baekhyun's hoodie."I believe this belongs to you."

"Thank you for remembering!" Baekhyun took the hoodie. "I'll see you around."

"Yep. See you." Taeyong smiled. "Bye, Chanyeol!" He said loudly enough to capture the taller's attention. 

He shrugged his shoulders when Chanyeol didn't respond and left. 

"You didn't invite him in?" Chanyeol said when Baekhyun closed the door. 

"He was planning on leaving. Why would I? It's been a long day." Baekhyun looked drained. 

"Just figured you would want to invite your boyfriend to spend more time with you." Chanyeol shrugged nonchalantly and sat on the couch.

"Okay, what is your problem with him? Taeyong has been nothing but nice to you. He even paid for dinner!" Baekhyun stood in front of Chanyeol and crossed his arms. "Just...what is your problem?" 

"My problem?" Chanyeol raised his voice. "What is your problem? You're practically throwing yourself at the guy." 

"You're impossible." Baekhyun pulled at his hair. "Is this your thing? Who have you become? You're acting like a real asshole. You've been ignoring me for weeks and are extremely dismissive. You were staying with Soomi, who is an absolute bitch, may I add. You must really think I'm a piece of shit, huh?" 

"That was for publicity and you know it. I had no choice. How many times have I told you this?" Chanyeol stood up from the couch to look down at Baekhyun. 

"Was agreeing what what she said about me a publicity stunt?" Baekhyun asked. "I know she talked shit about me to you and you stayed with her."

"Do you hear yourself? You're the one that hasn bee ignoring me." 

"You're delusional." Baekhyun rolled his eyes and started to walk away. 

"Oh, yeah. Go ahead and stay with your boyfriend. I'll just be here when you decide to grow up." Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun stopped in his place and turned around before marching up to Chanyeol. He pointed a finger at the taller's chest. "He is not my boyfriend, Chanyeol. He has been dating the same person for five years and, newsflash, it isn't me! Wow, I know, crazy concept. I can be friends with a guy and not like him." He caught his breath. "Taeyong is a good person. At least I am friends with someone who treats me fairly. Soomi said some horrible things to me, but I think you are well aware." 

The words didn't process to Chanyeol. "You're acting jealous."

"Me? You're the one that was seemingly jealous about my friendship with Taeyong." Baekhyun said

"Maybe I was, okay?" Chanyeol lowered his voice.

"Why? I don't understand you, Chanyeol." Baekhyun scowled.

"I was jealous, alright? You caught me." Chanyeol raised his hands up, as if he was caught. 

"Why?" Baekhyun repeated. "We're friends, or we used to be. I don't even know anymore. We used to be like that before you changed."

"Do you want to know why I changed?" Chanyeol didn't wait for Baekhyun to answer. "Because I hate this. I hate feeling this way. I hate the things I said to you and I despise the things Soomi said. They are still eating away at me. I haven't forgiven myself for what I said. I've been avoiding you because none of this is fair to you. Knowing that I am the reason you have been upset and that I wasn't there to comfort you when you were going through what you were is the worst feeling I have ever experienced. You never got closure for what happened because of me. I cannot believe I said those things and made you feel so horrible. I hate myself so much, that I don't know what to do. I can't be selfish, that's why I'm hurting you." 

"You are being selfish for pushing me away. I never wanted you to push me away. You and Sehun are some of the few people I still have in my life and pushing me away is making me feel like I'm losing the last few people that care about me." Baekhyun sounded so small as he spoke and Chanyeol's heart broke. 

"Oh, Baek." Chanyeol pulled Baekhyun to his chest and held him there. "I'm so sorry. I just, I can't hurt you. I can't ruin everything for you."

"Please just tell me why. What is it?" Baekhyun wrapped his arms tightly around Chanyeol's torso. "You can be honest with me."

"What if it will change the way you think of me? What if you hate what I tell you and you never talk to me again?" Chanyeol didn't know why he could feel tears in his own eyes forming. 

"I promise you that I would never think ill of you. You're the nicest and most supportive person I know. I know that you haven't been yourself lately and I forgive that, so please just tell me." 

Chanyeol continued to hold Baekhyun, but he sat back on the couch, so he could hold Baekhyun to his chest. 

"Okay," Chanyeol shakily said, "Baekhyun, I like guys. I think I've known for a long time and I was saying horrible things to you because I was afraid of people finding out. I was horrified to tell you because of what you went through with Baekho."

"Chanyeol, it's okay. That's okay." Baekhyun's heart dropped a little at the thought of Chanyeol having feelings for another guy that wasn't him. "I think I understand more so as to why you said some of the things you did. You were scared." 

"This person, though. I love them. "Chanyeol had his cheek pressed to the top of Baekhyun's head as he closed his eyes. "Baekhyun, it's you. I am in love with you."

Baekhyun froze against Chanyeol's form. He gently lifted his head from Chanyeol's chest to look at him. 

"Are you joking?" Baekhyun cautiously asked. "Please don't joke with me like that."

"I'm not. It took me so long, and a little help from Sehun, to accept it. I love you."

Baekhyun sighed. "I-" He started, "I think I love you too. I _know_ I love you too. It hit me like a bag of bricks when I finally realized I did. I was like you, so scared of how people would look at me if they knew that I liked guys. I was in denial for far too long. I didn't think that it was love until I put the pieces together. You always protected me, you helped me, I overcame so much because of you. It has been so hard for me because I've felt like I have been on my own my whole life and then you came into my life and made things feel right." Chanyeol used his thumb to wipe at the tears slipping down Baekhyun's pretty cheeks. "I tried to avoid you because I didn't want to lose what you have because of me. I mean, little Baekhyun, the person who has the rumors surrounding him, the insecure one, the one who shouldn't be an idol, bland Baekhyun surrounded by the two visuals of the group."

"Baekhyun, you are the most beautiful person I have ever seen. When you walked into the event last week, my jaw nearly hit the floor when I saw you. You have a heart of gold, too, and you're the strongest person I've met. I know you've gone through a lot growing up and, no, I won't pry, but look at what you have done for yourself. I love you for you. I know you have insecurities, but I hope that, one day, you can see just how special you really are."

Baekhyun sadly smiled up at Chanyeol and brushed the taller's hair from his face. "We've been lying to ourselves for a long time, haven't we?" He lightly laughed. "What do we do now? I don't want to lose you, but I feel like we will lose each other in the world we live in. I don't want to hide you, hide us." 

"It's not going to be easy, but when have things been simple for us?" Chanyeol cupped Baekhyun's cheeks. "We'll be okay. Come on, let's go to bed." 

Chanyeol changed out of his formal attire and laid down on his bed. He left his door open and smiled when he saw Baekhyun standing in the doorframe. 

"Knock knock." Baekhyun shyly smiled.

Chanyeol pat the spot on his mattress next to him and Baekhyun happily walked over and laid down next to him. He pulled the covers over himself and buried his face in the fabric of Chanyeol's shirt. 

Chanyeol turned the light on his nightstand off and brought Baekhyun closer to him. 

"I'm scared, Chanyeol." Baekhyun said, barely above a whisper. 

"I'll do whatever it takes to protect you." Chanyeol tried to comfort Baekhyun. 

"Just...don't leave me, okay?" 

"Never."

"The king has arrived!" Sehun's voice echoed through the dorm. 

"Stop talking about yourself so highly." Chanyeol said from the stove, where he was heating up soup. 

"I definitely was talking about Vivi." Sehun thumbed at the dog under his right arm. 

"That sounds about right." Chanyeol grinned at the dog. 

Sehun set Vivi down and the white bichon went running down the hall. 

"Vivi!" Baekhyun's voice came from the hall. Soon enough, he approached the idols with Vivi in tow. 

"You two seem to be in a pretty good mood." Sehun leaned against the wall and grinned at them. 

"Yeah, we talked last night." Chanyeol opened up the chestnut-colored cabinet above his head to retrieve three bowls. 

"And?" Sehun pressed. 

"Wait, am I missing something?" Baekhyun asked from his sitting position on the floor next to Vivi. "Hun, you know about this?"

"I knew one of the guys Soomi tried to cheat on Chanyeol with and he helped me get the paparazzi to release those images. Hence, the lack of Soomi in our lives, which I am very grateful for." Sehun said. 

"Not to mention that I had a bit of a talk with Sehun and he was the final push that I needed to confess to you." Chanyeol turned off the stove and ladled the soup into the bowls. He lifted the top of the rice cooker and used the, already prepared bowls, to take out a serving for each of them. 

"So you're not mad?" Baekhyun looked expectantly at Sehun. 

"The last thing I would be was mad. You really think that it took me that long to find a gift for my mother in Jeju? I was trying to give you guys time alone. I swear, I have been the third wheel of this group since the day you two met. I've had a bet with myself that you guys would get together. I just knew it." Sehun smiled. "I don't care if you are both guys. Take my words for it that I would be the last person to be offended by that. I just want you two to be happy." 

"We don't know what to do, though. I don't want to have to date secretly and then 365 pulls another scandal or something." Baekhyun stood up and went to the sink to wash his hands. 

"Whatever you decide, I'll support you. If you want to be open about your relationship, that's okay. I can't guarantee that the company will be happy about it, but we don't need them. We are strong enough on our own." 

"You would be willing to be kicked out of the company for us?" Chanyeol asked incredulously. 

"I don't want that to happen, but I would happily leave with you guys. We're a team, aren't we?" Sehun smiled warmly. 

"Thank you, Sehun." Chanyeol took one of the seats at the table. "Let's enjoy a meal together." 

...

Once they were done with their meals, they did the final edits for the repackage and planned a time to film the music video to their song with Taeyong, _Destination._ They were to film the teaser videos for the video that night. 

"Taeyong will film his tomorrow. He is busy today." Their videographer told them. "Baekhyun, let's get you done first, since your teaser will be the first to be released." 

Baekhyun nodded and did as he was told. When he was done, he sat and watched the camera men. 

"Baekhyun," Jinwoo's voice came from the door frame, "You go ahead and head back. I need Sehun and Chanyeol to stay a bit longer to redo a verse."

"Okay, I'll call a driver." Baekhyun picked up his phone from the couch. 

"It is less than a five minute walk to the dorms and everyone is tired, Byun. You'll be fine walking by yourself." Jinwoo responded. 

"Mr. Lee, it's dark out and there are crazy fans out there." Chanyeol said from his position in front of the camera. 

"Cut." The camera man said in a frustrated tone. "You can't open your mouth while I'm filming." 

"Sorry." Chanyeol bowed. 

"There are no fans out at this hour. Besides, he can take the back way. That is designed to be a safe way to get to and from the building." Jinwoo scoffed. 

"It's okay, I'll head out." Baekhyun took his jacket from the armrest of the couch and put it on over the graphic tee they put him in. "See you tomorrow."

Baekhyun exited the studio and made sure to be wary of his surroundings. 

Of course, to Baekhyun's chagrin, he saw a figure with a puff of smoke emitting from their mouth just ahead of him. He knew it was Soomi before he examined the person further. He attempted to walk as far away from them as possible. 

"Byun." Soomi called. "I've been waiting for you." 

Baekhyun ignored her and continued to walk. He tried to make himself as small as possible while he passed her, but she grabbed his wrist to stop him. 

"Chill. I just want to talk." Soomi said. 

"Sorry, I can't. I am very busy." Baekhyun dismissively said. 

"Bullshit." Soomi responded. "I know Lee said you could go home."

"How do you know that?" Baekhyun questioned. 

"Don't worry about it." Soomi flicked the ashes of her cigarette on Baekhyun's shoes. "You thought I would be kicked out of the company, didn't you? For what I did." 

"No." Baekhyun shook his head. "I really had no involvement in any of this, so I really don't want to talk about it." 

"Yes, you did." Soomi laughed. "The whole reason this happened is because of you. You broke me and Chanyeol up. You're so happy this happened, aren't you? You lose your shit every time you see him because you're a faggot. I don't know what you think, but Chanyeol isn't gay. He thinks you're disgusting. No one here likes you. You know that I didn't even get a slap on the wrist for what happened? Yeah, Lee put on a front, but he didn't do shit to me. Those images are going to get passed off as being when I wasn't with him and we're going to get back together. Jinwoo wasn't happy at first and the only reason he didn't want to pin this all on Chanyeol was because you have enough controversy in your little group. You're about to have even more. Want to know why?"

Soomi didn't wait for Baekhyun to respond. 

"I talked to a few people from school who didn't like you and they're going to back up my statement that you tried to date them. Guys are so fucking dumb. They were too enamored with the fact that I was talking to them to decline anything I said. I even have photos of you talking to them. Remember Dohun and Moonsik?"

Baekhyun stammered as he spoke. "The only time I talked to them was for a group project." He said. "I literally had no other interactions with them." 

"Well, Dohun was on the yearbook committee and someone took some photos that I can easily get photoshopped to look differently than what you say. Face it, you were friends with that queer that killed himself.  The probability of you being gay was high and now I know that you are. What's your move? Are you going to stay away or do you want this shit to get leaked?" 

Baekhyun froze. This could end his career. He finally felt how Baekho must have felt--helpless. He didn't want to give up. That little voice in his head told him to do whatever he could to fight back. His mind drifted back to Chanyeol. He said he would always protect Baekhyun, so it was time for Baekhyun to stand up on his own. Even if he was outed, he would never tell anyone about his feelings for Chanyeol. The worst that would happen would be Baekhyun losing his carer and, if that happened, he would deny any connection with Chanyeol. 

"I'm not scared of you, Soomi. You're acting very immature. You should just drop this before it gets out of hand. I'll pretend this conversation didn't happen." Baekhyun gave her a once-over with a look of disgust. 

"I figured you would try to stand up for yourself." Soomi smirked. "You have a music video to film tomorrow, right? You can't be in it if you look like shit." 

"What?" Baekhyun chuckled. "You're going to beat me up?"

"No, but he is." Soomi nodded at the direction of the dorms. The street lights illuminated the figure approaching and it vaguely looked like Dohun, but Baekyun wasn't sure.

"You'll never change, Soomi." If Baekhyun was going to get hurt, he may as well speak his mind. "You're so insecure about yourself that you need to bring down other people to feel better about yourself. I swear, I thought I was self-conscious, but you take it to a whole other level. You have to take down everyone around you to get to the top. Let's face it, your songs aren't getting as many views as you want and you're running out of body parts to get surgery on. It's not my fault that Oasis is more successful than you'll ever be. You and Chanyeol weren't even in a real relationship. You got these ideas in his head and used a time of weakness for him to try and gain power. I hope you feel good about yourself."

"Do you know who my father is?" Soomi raised her voice. "He has more money than you will ever have! He owns half of the buildings in Seoul!"

Baekhyun rolled his eyes. Dohun was in his peripheral vision, getting closer by the second. "I don't give a shit who your father is. At least he has money to pay for your expensive lifestyle because we all know you can't make that money on your own. Maybe he should pay for vocal lessons for you too." 

"Hey, faggot." Dohun's familiar drawl filled Baekhyun's ears. Before he knew it, he was shoved to the concrete wall of the building next to them. He felt blows being thrown to his stomach, but they didn't bother him at that point. He was just proud of himself for standing up to Soomi. 

He didn't register what was happening until he heard yelling coming from behind him and he felt himself being dropped to the ground. 

"Baekhyun?" Chanyeol called. He kneeled in front of the smaller and used his phone's flash to examine him. "I was trying to call you and you didn't pick up. I knew something was wrong. What happened? Who was that?" 

"That was me standing up for myself." Baekhyun said. 

"Let's get you back home. I need to see what happened." 

Chanyeol carried Baekhyun on his back to the dorm and set him down gently on the couch before looking at him. 

"Your nose is bleeding, Baek." Chanyeol ran to the kitchen and came back with a damp towel. He wiped away the drying blood under Baekhyun's nose. "You have a few scratches on your cheek. Where else did you get hit?" 

Baekhyun lifted up his shirt, not bothering to look down. 

"Is it bad?" He asked.

"Baekhyun" Chanyeol's voice was stern, "Who did this? I'm going to kill them." 

Baekhyun lowered his shirt. "Some guy from high school. Soomi got in contact with these guys we had classes with and now she's threatening to edit some images together to make it look like I was doing something I wasn't to them. She said they're going to attest that I tried to get with them, or something."

"How are you taking this so well?" Chanyeol questioned. "My blood is boiling for you."

"Because I told her off. I should have done that years ago. Plus," Baekhyun grinned, "I get to have you and she doesn't."

"But you're going to be all bruised up. I'll run a bath for you." Chanyeol was stopped from moving when Baekhyun gently reached for his wrist. 

"I don't want you to leave me. If something happens to me, you have to pretend like nothing is between us."

"Baekhyun, I love you. I would never do that. We are in this together. Nothing is going to happen to you. I'm sorry I wasn't there to protect you like I promised."  

"It's not your fault, so don't apologize." Baekhyun grazed Chanyeol's cheek with his thumb. 

Chanyeol wasn't convinced, but he nodded nonetheless. 

Baekhyun released Chanyeol's wrist and Chanyeol left to run a bath for Baekhyun. 

"Alright, it's ready." Chanyeol emerged from the bathroom. 

Baekhyun stood up and winced at the pain that shot through his leg. Immediately, Chanyeol ran over and helped him walk. 

"It's okay, just a little sore." Baekhyun smiled up at Chanyeol and Chanyeol wondered why Baekhyun could be so positive, despite surely being in pain. 

Chanyeol gave Baekhyun privacy to get into the bath and turned around when Baekhyun gave the okay. Chanyeol sat at the foot of the tub and helped Baekhyun wash off the residual blood from his face and the remnants of makeup he had on for the photoshoot. 

Chanyeol rested his head on his arms on the side of the tub and watched Baekhyun hum to himself. 

"What?" Baekhyun asked once he looked up from the bubbles in the tub. 

"You're so beautiful." Baekhyun smiled into the sleeve of his hoodie. 

"Look who is talking." Baekhyun blushed. "You're just saying that. I'm not even wearing makeup, so I know you're bluffing."

"You're a natural beauty. Yeah, the makeup adds to your features and you look hot as hell, but you're just as stunning without it." Chanyeol honestly said. 

"Even like this?" Baekhyun pointed at the faded purple blotch on his chest that would surely become more prominent as the days pass.

"Even like that." Chanyeol nodded. "Anyway, let's get you out of there."

Chanyeol took a towel from the rack for Baekhyun and put it around the smaller's waist before helping him out. Chanyeol helped Baekhyun get to his room and assisted him in sitting on the edge of his bed. 

"I can change on my own." Baekhyun said. 

"Okay, while you do that, I'll get you some painkillers." Chanyeol said. He left Baekhyun's room to get them, as promised and quickly made a pit stop into his room to take off the jeans the stylists put him in. He swore they were going to cut off his circulation if he wore them any longer. He threw on a pair of black sweatpants and went back into Baekhyun's room with the painkillers in tow. 

"Here you go, Baek." Chanyeol said to the blonde, who was leaning against the headrest of his bedframe. 

"Thank you." Baekhyun took the pills dry and leaned his head back on the pillows. 

"Goodnight." Chanyeol said. 

Baekhyun opened one eye to glance over at Chanyeol. "Stay in here with me?" He asked. 

"Oh, sure, yeah, of course." Chanyeol said, closing the door so Vivi wouldn't saunter in while they were sleeping. 

Baekhyun turned on the television and Chanyeol turned off the lights before carefully laying next to Baekhyun. 

"I don't want to hurt you." Chanyeol whispered. 

"You won't." Baekhyun whispered back before cautiously nuzzling close to Chanyeol and watching whatever he mindlessly put on the television.

"I'm going to get this sorted out." Chanyeol said after a long silence. "I bet the building next door has security cameras."

"It's not your battle, Chan." Baekhyun responded. "Protect your image." 

"I'm tired of trying to save face. I've been doing it for too long. Whatever happens to me, then so be it. If I have to lose you, then maybe I don't want to be an idol." Chanyeol ran his hand down Baekhyun's back gently. "I'd rather be a struggling musician than lose you. It's a shame it took me so long to figure that out." 

Baekhyun kissed the exposed skin on Chanyeol's jawline. "I love you so much. I'm still learning how to accept myself, but you have taught me so much." 

"We can learn together. This is all so new, but it's so right." Chanyeol said. "Can I kiss you again? I'll be careful." 

Baekhyun nodded and Chanyeol cautiously crawled over Baekhyun to place gentle kisses on his lips. 

Baekhyun's hands grazed the warm skin underneath Chanyeol's hoodie and held his hips in place, as if he was worried Chanyeol would leave at any moment. 

"I'm not going anywhere." Chanyeol said in between kisses, as if he was reading Baekhyun's mind. 

Chanyeol kissed from Baekhyun's neck, to his torso, looking up in permission each time he did so. 

"Are you hurting?" Chanyeol asked while he hovered over one of the bruises on Baekhyun's ribcage. 

"Barely." Baekhyun answered. 

"Good." Chanyeol smiled. He peppered the most delicate of kisses on the injuries. He massaged at Baekhyun's hips before dismounting himself and sitting next to Baekhyun cross-legged. 

"Is everything okay?" Baekhyun looked concerned. 

"Yeah," Chanyeol breathed out, "Yeah, I just don't want to get ahead of myself." 

"It's okay." Baekhyun said. "Anything you do it okay. I trust you." 

Chanyeol offered Baekhyun an incredulous look. 

"Really." 

Chanyeol slowly nodded and ran his index finger along them hem of Baekhyun's sweatpants. He looked up to Baekhyun for permission, who nodded in affirmation. 

Baekhyun was good at hiding his emotions. He was scared, still unsure about himself. He could tell Chanyeol was just as scared as he was. This was all so new to them.

With a shaky hand, Chanyeol brought Baekhyun's sweatpants down just low enough to rest at his knees. Chanyeol immediately went for Baekhyun's thighs, running his hands along the skin as if it was the first time he had ever touched him. 

"You're so, so beautiful." Chanyeol whispered. "I can't believe I have you in front of me like this." 

Baekhyun blushed at the comment. Something about being so vulnerable to Chanyeol excited him. 

Baekhyun watched Chanyeol lower himself to kiss Baekhyun's inner thigh, eventually making his way to Baekhyun's clothed member, hot breath grazing over him. 

"Can I make you feel good, Baekhyun?" Chanyeol asked. "I want you to forget every worry you have."

Baekhyun swallowed hard before answering. "Yes, you can do whatever."

Chanyeol took the lead that night, making sure Baekhyun only had one thing on his mind--Chanyeol. Chanyeol made him feel good, protected, loved, happy. Chanyeol made Baekhyun feel a little less lonely and scrutinized in a world of judgement. 

Baekhyun woke up the next day in Chanyeol's arms. Their exposed chests were still flushed from the night earlier and, for the first time in a while, Baekhyun woke up with a smile on his face. 

Baekhyun extended one of his hands to search for Chanyeol's, interlocking their fingers together. 

"Morning." Chanyeol groggily said, clearly not a morning person. "How are you feeling?" 

"Sore." Baekhyun said. 

"Oh yeah, those bruises are probably getting more prominent. I'll get you some painkillers."

"No, not because of that." Baekhyun responded. 

"What do you mean? Is it your nose? Or--oh." Chanyeol shyly lowered his voice. 

"Worth it, though." Baekhyun grinned to himself. 

"Hey, lovebirds!" Sehun knocked on Baekhyun's bedroom door. "We have a music video to film today!" 

Chanyeol's eyes shot to Baekhyun worriedly. 

"I'll play it off well." Baekhyun said. "I need to tell Sehun what happened, though." 

"You're not going to tell Lee?" Chanyeol questioned. 

"I don't know if I can trust him. Soomi knew a lot of things that only Lee could have told her." Baekhyun slowly sat up. "She knew what time I was leaving and to bring someone to do that to me. Soomi said that Lee didn't really reprimand her anymore than he did in front of us and they're going to say the images were from before you two started dating. She wants you back." 

"She's not going to get me back. I guess what happened to you will remain a secret until I can get proof that it happened to you to show the company." Chanyeol said. 

"You're the best." Baekhyun pecked Chanyeol on the lips before standing up. "I'm going to shower." 

Baekhyun left and Chanyeol opted to shower, as well. He threw on a hoodie and sweatpants, since h figured thy would be styled for the music video. 

Chanyeol knocked on the other bathroom door to check on Baekhyun. 

"Need any help?" Chanyeol asked.

"You can come in." Baekhyun called back. 

Chanyeol obliged and opened the door and slipped inside. The room was still foggy from the steamy shower Baekhyun must have had. Chanyeol turned on the fan and eyed Baekhyun, who was throwing a gray sweater over his torso. 

"Are you feeling okay?" Chanyeol got a better look at Baekhyun. "Your poor nose is all splotchy."

"I'm doing alright." Baekhyun brushes his hair back into place. "My ribs hurt, but I can't feel any of the stuff on my face. 

Chanyeol frowned at Baekhyun's yellowing cheekbone. "Poor baby." 

"Oh," Baekhyun smirked, "I'm your baby now?"

Chanyeol wrapped his arms around Baekhyun's waist and pulled him closer. 

"If that's okay with you." Chanyeol kissed the top of Baekhyun's head. 

"I thought you would never ask." Baekhyun looked up a far as he could to reach the taller's jawline. He placed a quick peck on the delicate skin before retracting. 

Chanyeol assisted him in walking into the living room and sitting on the couch. Sehun looked up from his phone when he heard them enter the room and furrowed his brows at Baekhyun's appearance. 

"What happened?" Sehun asked. 

Baekhyun relaxed into the couch and pat the spot next to him for Vivi to join him on the couch. "Soomi happened." 

"Oh, God." Sehun rolled his eyes. "Do continue."

After filling Sehun in on what happened and getting a string of colorful comments about Soomi from him, Oasis went to the studio, where they met up with Taeyong and took a private car to their music video location. Once they got to the location, which ended up being a theme park, the stylists hauled them away to get them camera ready. 

Baekhyun was thrown into a navy blue blazer with a matching colored beret, gold circle-rimmed glasses, a striped tee and deep wash jeans. The makeup artists kept his look mostly natural, minus covering the injuries on his face. Not one person bothered to ask Baekhyun what happened which, quite frankly, didn't shock him. 

Baekhyun went to the tent where he was told to wait and saw Taeyong relaxing in one of the chairs. His look was much different than Baekhyun's. He fashioned a black graphic tee with a mesh shirt on underneath, black jeans tight enough to surely make him uncomfortable, and black combat boots. 

 

"Where are they going with these looks?" Taeyong joked. "How am I supposed to do our choreography in these pants?"

 

"Same." Baekhyun chuckled. "They can't blame us if our pants rip." 

 

Taeyong laughed at the comment before his expression changed to serious. "Did something...happen to you?" He asked. "I could have sworn your nose looked a little scraped up earlier."

 

"The power of makeup hid it." Baekhyun said. "Yeah, I...got jumped....yesterday. Luckily, Chanyeol came to my rescue before it got worse." 

 

"Good on him. Sorry that happened to you. I can tell there's more to the story, but I won't press." Taeyong opened up one of the water bottles on the table next to him. 

 

Baekhyun took a seat next to Taeyong and was offered a water. 

 

"Aren't you cold in that?" Baekhyun asked. "I'm freezing and wearing far more than you."

 

Taeyong shrugged. "It's alright. It's warmer here than it is in Japan around this time." Taeyong set the bottle of water next to him on the floor. "I'll probably regret saying that the more we're out here, though." 

 

Sehun came out next with a barely buttoned up dress shirt with a burnt sienna colored trench coat over it. It was paired with a tasteful choker and, once again, equally as tight pants. 

 

Chanyeol showed up not soon after in a green track suit and frameless aviator glasses. 

 

"At least one of us gets to be warm and have movement." Sehun rolled his eyes playfully. 

 

Chanyeol's eyes shifted in between Taeyong and Baekhyun, subconsciously frowning in distaste when he saw how close they were sitting. 

 

"Chan, sit with me." Baekhyun moved aside to let Chanyeol sit in between him and Taeyong and Chanyeol happily obliged. Chanyeol rest his palm protectively on Baekhyun's thigh, earning a smirk from Taeyong that he didn't notice. 

 

"I see everyone is done." Lee Jinwoo entered the tent, looking unimpressed. "Good to see you, Baekhyun."

 

Baekhyun eyed Mr. Lee suspiciously. "You just saw me last night."

 

"Of course." Jinwoo smiled insincerely. Come on, we aren't renting this place all day."

 

....

 

Wrapping up the shoot was bittersweet. Working with Taeyong was a joy and Baekhyun would miss him. 

 

"We'll still hang out after this, right?" Taeyong took one of the prepared blankets in the tent and pulled it around his shoulders. 

 

"Of course." Baekhyun beamed. "You have my number."

 

"That I do." Taeyong smiled. "Maybe we can all go to karaoke, or something." 

 

"Can I talk to you for a second?" Chanyeol said to Taeyong. 

 

"Sure, what's up?" Taeyong responded. 

 

"Sorry about acting like an asshole." Chanyeol said. "You don't have to say anything, I know I was. I was just going through a lot. It's not an excuse, but." He sighed. Sehun came up behind Chanyeol and wrapped his arm around the older's shoulders. 

 

"It's no problem, really." Taeyong chuckled. "I would be angry too if," He lowered his voice in case anyone in the company was eavesdropping, "Someone made me date Soomi." 

 

“Right?” Sehun raised his free hand in agreement.

 

“Hey, time to go.” Jinwoo came into the tent with a styrofoam cup filled with, what Baekhyun suspected to be, coffee. “We have an emergency meeting.”

 

“We’ll talk later.” Taeyong whispered to the three. “It was great working with you.”

 

“Same to you. Bye.” Baekhyun followed the other two members of Oasis out of the tent and back into the van. They were brought back to the company building and led into one of the meeting rooms.

 

“Sit.” Jinwoo pointed to the three office chairs on the other side of the table. “We need to talk.”

 

Baekhyun swallowed hard when Jinwoo’s eyes landed on him.

 

“I need you to explain something to me, Byun.” Jinwoo dragged his hands down his face in a frustrated manner. “What is this?”

 

He took his phone out from the pocket of his dress pants and unlocked it. He put it on the table in front of Baekhyun. It was a photo of Moonsik, just as Soomi said, and Baekhyun was beside him. It didn't look like anything other than Baekhyun possibly laughing at a joke that his group mate made and Moonsik making a face of distaste from what he was saying. 

 

"Okay, what about it?" Sehun asked. "I don't understand what is so bad about it." 

 

"There is a story that goes with it and it checks out. Three of Byun's classmates agreed that Baekhyun had propositioned his male classmate and said some rather grotesque things to him." Jinwoo took his phone back. 

"There is no way." Chanyeol said. "You got false information." 

 

"I did not." Jinwoo protested. "Want to know how we are going to solve this? Park, you're getting back together with Soomi. The news will distract from the rumors already floating around the internet. Some anonymous fan account online is starting a lot of drama and we can't have that." Jinwoo continued. "You're lucky I'm not kicking you out of the group." 

 

"That's bullshit." Sehun stood up from the chair. "What ever happened to Soomi's punishment?" 

 

"I'm starting to believe her claims more than what I initially thought was true." Jinwoo folded his arms. "To think I defended you." 

 

"I'm not gettinig back together with Soomi." Chanyeol firmly said. 

 

"Oh, yes you are." Jinwoo said. "Come in."

 

From behind them, Soomi entered the room and grinned at Chanyeol. 

 

"Miss me?" She said. 

 

"Not in the slightest." It was Chanyeol's turn to shoot up from his seat. "You have a lot of nerve, you know."

 

"What ever are you talking about?" Soomi pouted before looking at Baekhyun. "Oh, poor Baekhyun. What happened to your nose? It looks a little red." She feigned a frown. 

 

"That's it." Baekhyun stood up. "I need to go."

 

"And that is exactly what you will be doing." Jinwoo said. "We concluded that it is best to halt you from group activities for now. That means no interviews, no stages, no nothing for you. Think of it as a time to reflect on your disgusting morals." He smiled. "Oh, and one more thing, you can no longer live with Oh and Park. We suggest you move back home. You can take the subway back when we decide to let you resume activities."

 

"Back home?" Baekhyun's eyes widened at the comment. "I'll get bombarded on the subway. Not only that, but it will take me nearly an hour to get here every day." 

 

"Maybe you should have done things differently if you're going to complain." Jinwoo shrugged. 

 

"Mr. Lee," Sehun started, "You can't be serious. This is unfair. That image means nothing and neither do those claims. Baekhyun has been working incredibly hard. Do you not even care that he is a victim in this situation?" He frowned. "Or, are you just pretending that you don't know what happened?" 

 

"Sit down right now, Oh. As for you," Jinwoo gave Baekhyun a blank stare, "Pack your bags. If I get any word that you're back in Seoul for the next week, I will consider that a breach of your contact. Now, go." 

 

Chanyeol was about to retort when Baekhyun stopped him. 

 

"It's fine, Chan." Baekhyun said. "I'll see you next week." 

 

Baekhyun honestly couldn't call Bucheon his home. Sure, he was born there and lived there his teenage years, but it didn't feel right being back. His father was remarried and living in Canada, while his mother was somewhere in Bucheon. Baekhyun lived with his grandfather until he left to train to become an idol. His grandmother passed away when he was twelve and his grandfather when he was training. Chanyeol was there to comfort him when he heard the news. 

When Baekhyun began to rise in fame, his mother demanded for her son to be in her life. The first time he had seen her since he was a child was when he went back home for the holidays. He was going to stay with Baekho, but his mother insisted he was to stay in her home. 

His mother was anything but responsible, but Baekhyun knew it was best to stay with her. If she got word of Baekhyun being home without her knowledge, she would get angry. 

 

He dialed her number and waited for her to answer. 

 

"Baekhyun?" His mother asked. 

 

"Hey, mom." Baekhyun responded. "I'm in Bucheon for a week. Can I stay with you?" 

 

"Uh, yeah. That's fine." She said. "I can text you the address." 

 

"Sure. Bye, mom." Baekhyun hung up. 

 

His mother sent him the address and he was on his way. It was definitely a different place from when he first visited her. Her home now was a small apartment above a flower shop in a shopping center. He knocked on the door and waited for her to answer. 

 

His mother opened the door and gave Baekhyun a lopsided grin. The years of smoking were catching up to her, Baekhyun could tell, but otherwise, she looked the same. Her hair was thrown into a bun and her eyes were as bright as ever. Baekhyun resembled his mother, no doubt. 

 

"Look at that hair!" Ms. Byun exclaimed and enveloped her son into a hug. "How are you, sweetheart?" 

 

"You know," Baekhyun sighed, "The usual."

 

"You finally got a vacation? That's great." She smiled. "Let's get you out of the cold." 

 

Baekhyun followed his mother into her home and sat on the teal couch she motioned to. 

 

"How is my little Baekkie? I saw you on the cover of a magazine when I was coming back home this morning." Ms. Byun sat in the loveseat across from the couch. "You seem well off." 

 

Baekhyun shrugged. "It's probably for promotion. I've been putting my money away, so I can take a trip whenever I get enough free time." 

 

"Well," Ms. Byun started, "If you have plenty of money to save up, I've been wanting to move out of this place and I could use some help. I already found the house I want, but I need the money from here to put down as the deposit." 

 

Baekhyun was in disbelief at his mother's words. Despite the neglect that she had for Baekhyun, he still made sure to send her money every month to keep her on her feet. She had issues in the past and Baekhyun wanted to assure she wouldn't fall back into her bad ways. 

 

"I mean, it's not that much that I have. The company takes a huge cut. I guess I can look at my account." Baekhyun said. 

 

Ms. Byun clapped her hands together. "Oh, great! My fiancee is going to love that. We've been talking about starting a family together." She stood up. "How long are you staying?"

 

Baekhyun had barely been home and he wished he could be anywhere else. 

 

"I'm not sure yet." Baekhyun lied.

 

"Alright, well, how about we go to the bank later and you can just give me the money for the deposit? Who knows, maybe the tellers will be fans of you and give me extra money." Ms. Byun walked up to Baekhyun and squeezed his cheeks. "Joking, of course. Anyway, my friend Jisoo invited me out to go shopping, so I will see you later!" She grabbed her purse from the side table situated next to the couch. Baekhyun watched as an avalanche of papers fell once she lifted the purse. 

 

As soon as his mother left, Baekhyun took his bag and left his mother's residence.  His options were limited, as Baekho's mother, who Baekhyun knew would welcome him, seemed selfish to ask as she was going through a lot. His next best option was a hotel, but he feared that fans would get word of where he was. 

 

He opted for relaxing in the coffee shop across from his mother's apartment until he knew where to go.

 

Why was everything so difficult for him? It was like Baekhyun couldn't catch a break and the world was against him. All he wanted was someone to love him, and when he finally found that person, he couldn't be with them publically. It hurt. Why couldn't he be normal? 

 

Baekhyun's mind wandered back to Baekho. That must have been how he felt. Baekho couldn't take the pain inflicted on him. Baekhyun wished he could have been there for him.

 

Baekhyun nearly jumped when his phone buzzed in his pocket and he was shocked to see that it was Baekho's mother, Mrs. Kim. He immediately picked it up. 

 

"Hello, Mrs. Kim." Baekhyun was happy to hear from her. 

 

"Baekhyun! How are you? It's funny, I just saw your mother at the mall. She said you're in town." Mrs. Kim said. 

 

"I am." Baekhyun responded. 

 

"Would it be a bother for you to stop by? I have some things I want to give you that were Baekho's. I found a letter with your name on it while I was cleaning out some drawers in his room. Don't worry, I didn't read it." 

 

"Of course, my trip wouldn't be complete without seeing you." Baekhyun smiled to himself. 

 

"Great! You remember the address, right? I should be there in about half of an hour." Mrs. Kim said. "See you then." 

 

Baekhyun put his phone away when he heard her hang up, before picking it back up and checking to see if he had any messages from Chanyeol. He must be going through a lot, as well. 

 

Instead, he saw a message from Sehun. 

 

_From: Sehunnie_

 

_are u doing alright?? yeol hasnt been released from the clutches of soomi and co but he looks really upset. i hope ur okay over there and i miss you_

 

_To: Sehunnie_

 

_Hey, yeah, things are....well they just are.  Thanks for checking in_

 

Baekhyun pocketed his phone once more and went on his way to the neighborhood where Mrs. Kim lived. 

 

Chanyeol bit at his lip until he tasted iron . He wiped at his mouth and felt the saltiness of the sweat on his hands singe his fresh wound.

 

"Why are you so tense?" Soomi asked. She sat next to Jinwoo in the lobby of their company building. 

 

"I just am." Chanyeol tapped his foot. "Leave it alone."

 

"So," Jinwoo interrupted, "You two are going to walk to the convenience store across the street. Spend no more than a few minutes in here and come straight back here. It needs to look like you two weren't supposed to be caught and went to get a quick beverage." 

 

Soomi stood up. "Alright, let's go." She looked expectantly at Chanyeol. 

 

Chanyeol shot her a look of disgust before following her out of the building. 

 

"It's cold." Soomi reached for his hand and held it tightly as she leaned against Chanyeol. He shrugged her off and continued to walk to the convenience store. Chanyeol's heart sank when he heard camera shutters and saw flashes all around him. 

 

When they went into the store, Chanyeol made sure to grab what he needed at lightning speed and get back to the building as soon as possible. 

 

Soomi huffed behind him. She rolled her eyes at Jinwoo and sat down next to him.

 

"You really do seem tense." Jinwoo quirked a brow and signaled for Chanyeol to give him the beverages. 

 

"You could say that." Chanyeol shortly responded. 

 

"It's because of Byun, isn't it?" Jinwoo said, matter of factly. 

 

"I can fix that." Soomi whispered to Jinwoo. "Now, let's see how long until those photos get posted online." 

 

....

 

"I'm so glad you're here." Mrs. Kim said over her cup of tea. "Since you have all week off, you're more than welcome to stay here. The guest room is, well, you know where it is." She giggled. 

 

"Thank you so much." Baekhyun greatfully said. Mrs. Kim was understanding when he gave her a brief synopsis of his situation with his mother. 

 

"How about I make us some dinner and you can go see if there is anything of Baekho's you want? The letter is on the dresser in his room" Mrs. Kim said. 

 

Baekhyun nodded and went to his late friend's room once Baekho's mother retreated to the kitchen. 

 

Baekho's room was the same as he remembered it. Creme colored walls with movie posters and family photos greeted him. Baekhyun subconsciously smiled when he saw the photo of him and Baekho grinning broadly on their first day of high school hanging just above his bed. 

 

Baekhyun picked up a few photos that he found of the two of them to ask Mrs. Kim if he could keep them. The only other thing that he would ask about were the bracelets on top of the dresser along with the envelope that had Baekhyun's name on it. When they were in middle school, Baekho and Baekhyun thought they could rake in some extra money for video games by making bracelets. They practiced by making bracelets for each other and three of them that they made were on the dresser. Baekhyun set the photos down while he picked up the letter and careully took it out of the envelope. His heart sank as soon as he read his name written in neat cursive at the top. 

 

_Baekhyun,_

_I hope you're well. Thank you for always being there for me and I'm sorry for everything I did. I'm sorry for all of the mistakes I made. My life is a constant battle of wanting to be who I know I am and repressing it because...well....I'm terrified. I guess I deserved the harsh treatment I got because I am the type of person that disgusts other people. It still eats at me that I kissed you. It must have grossed you out. I was just so confused and I hope you can forgive me. You were the first person I felt romantic feelings towards and I acted on instinct. Something in my gut made me look at you and realize that maybe you and I weren't so different after all._

_I was lucky to be accepted by my parents, but I wish I would have told you I was gay, because I know you would have accepted me._

_You are the best friend I have ever had, but I can't live with the torment I receive every day. I'm not strong like you._

_The only thing I ask is that you stay strong for me. No matter what you go through, don't give up._

_I'll always be cheering you on, even if it has to be in spirit._

_Love you,_

_Baekho_

 

Baekhyun hasn't realized he was crying until he felt the moisture of tears on the paper. Maybe Baekho was right. Baekhyun couldn't give up. He wouldn't let others bring him down anymore. It destroyed Baekho, having to lie about who he really was. 

 

Baekhyun put the letter back in the envelope and picked up the photos and bracelets before going back into the kitchen. 

 

...

 

Baekhyun explained everything to Mrs. Kim; about how he was living a lie and was conflicted on what to do. Mrs. Kim was more than understanding and assured him that he would always have a place to come back to if he needed to. 

 

Baekhyun had dinner with Baekho's parents and retired to the guest room afterwards. He nearly passed out as soon as his head hit the pillow. 

 

The next morning, Baekhyun greeted Mr. and Mrs. Kim in the kitchen and sat down with a cup of coffee in his hands. 

 

His phone rang once he downed the cup and he turned it over to see that it was Sehun. 

 

"Hey," Sehun said before Baekhyun could even greet him, "Jinwoo said you need to come over right now."

 

"What about the week leave?" Baekhyun questioned. 

 

"No idea, but he told me to call you. Chanyeol is already on his way. I'm out running errands with Vivi and I'm supposed to be there at some point, too." Sehun sounded out of breath. 

 

"Okay, I'll head over." Baekhyun hung up and quickly grabbed his things. 

 

"Is everything alright?" Mr. Kim asked as he looked up from the newspaper in his hands. 

 

"Mr. Lee apparently needs me and it is urgent." Baekhyun said. 

 

"Good luck with whatever it is, honey." Mrs. Kim offered Baekhyun a sad smile. "Thank you for everything."

 

"That's my line." Baekhyun gave the Kims a small smile before he left. 

 

...

 

Nearly an hour and an expensive taxi fare later and Baekhyun was standing in front of the company building. He walked in and went up the stairs to get to the third floor. 

 

"There you are." Mr. Lee said from the stairwell. Baekhyun had no idea how Jinwoo knew where he was, but he didn't question it. 

 

Baekhyun sat across from Mr. Lee, much like he had done a couple of days ago. Chanyeol wasn't in the room, which surprised Baekhyun. 

 

Mr. Lee slid the dreaded manila envelope in front of Baekhyun and pulled out a pen from his pocket. 

 

Baekhyun opened the envelope and his heart dropped. 

 

"You're terminating my contract?" Baekhyun stared up at Jinwoo in disbelief. 

 

"You're lucky I am not doing worse. Look behind that document." Jinwoo lifted his chin at the papers. 

 

Baekhyun did as instructed and he saw various images from their Jeju trip of Chanyeol and Baekhyun on the bench. One of the shots was of Baekhyun and Chanyeol kissing. 

 

"Disgusting." Jinwoo's face distorted into a look of pure hatred. "You try and drag Park into your illicit behaviors too. Don't you know that not all of us are sinners like you?" 

 

Baekhyun could feel his cheeks redden in shame. Still, he kept word to himself and wouldn't drag Chanyeol down with him. "This isn't going to hurt the other members of Oasis, will it?" 

 

"No." Jinwoo threw the pen down in front of Baekhyun. "The image only reflects you badly, especially since Chanyeol has a girlfriend. This has no impact on Sehun, either, aside from having to find a new vocalist."

 

"Okay." Baekhyun breathed out. "I'll sign."

 

"Good." Jinwoo slowly folded his hands in front of him. "No other companies will accept you, so I sincerely hope you look for something else to do. Probably for the best anyway, considering your vocals are lackluster at best." 

 

Baekhyun signed his name on the papers. 

 

"Mr. Lee, Park and Oh are here." Baekhyun recognized the voice of the receptionist through the speaker in the meeting room. 

 

Mr. Lee pressed the speaking button to the right of him. "Send them in." 

 

A few moments later, Chanyeol and Sehun appeared in the doorframe. Chanyeol looked relieved to see Baekhyun and Sehun looked worried. 

 

"Looks like some images of you are Baekhyun being intimate in Jeju surfaced." Mr. Lee said, pulling the envelope in front of him and holding up the photos. "Baekhyun took advantage of you and, unfortunately, these were caught."

 

"That isn't how it was at all." Chanyeol walked into the room and took the photos in his hands. 

 

"Oh, but it is." Mr. Lee crossed his arms. "That's alright, though, because Baekhyun's contract has been terminated." He looked at Sehun. "We'll do auditions for a new vocalist next week. You just had your repackage completed, so there is time for us." 

 

"Woah, woah. You're joking, aren't you?" Chanyeol worriedly eyed Baekhyun, who fumbled with the zipper of his bag. 

 

"Why would I joke?" Jinwoo plainly said. "He signed the contract." He pointed at the termination papers with Baekhyun's signature on it. 

 

"You have another copy?" Chanyel asked. "I'm signing it too." 

 

Baekhyun reached for Chanyeol's hands. "Chanyeol, wait. Don't do that. Stay in Oasis. I'll be okay; don't let this hurt you too." 

 

"I don't care what it does to me. This isn't fair." Chanyeol's nostrils flared. "Soomi and Jinwoo have been behind all of this. I don't want to be part of this fucked up company." 

 

"Watch your mouth, Park." Jinwoo clenched his jaw. 

 

"No, fuck you, Lee." Chanyeol hovered over Jinwoo. "I'm not going to be part of this game."

 

"Okay, well, don't bother with the termination papers. I'm firing you, and you get no benefits." Jinwoo looked enraged. 

 

"I don't give a shit about benefits. In fact, the benefit is to not work for you anymore." Chanyeol helped Baekhyun stand up and wrapped his arm around him protectively. 

 

"Well," Sehun whistled, "This has been interesting." He said. "You can just send my last check in the mail to my mom's because I'm out, too. Good luck paying the debt you got yourself into without us, Lee. I would say it's been fun working with you, but it has actually been a nightmare." Sehun felt Chanyeol and Baekhyun's eyes on him in disbelief. "What?" He winked. "I told you guys that we're a team. You're actually doing me a favor by leaving. Now, we don't have to be sad and underpaid." 

 

Sehun sauntered over to the photos of Chanyeol and Baekhyun before scanning over them. He picked up the copy and folded it to put it into his pocket. "I'm sure you have more of these, so you won't mind me taking this one."

 

"You three are nothing without this company." Jinwoo said. "Good luck trying to autotune yourselves enough to have people actually listen to you."

 

"We'll be just fine." Chanyeol said. "Everything will be out of the dorms by tomorrow."

 

...

 

To say things went smoothly would be a lie. The photos of Chanyeol and Baekhyun surfaced, naturally. Instead of them hiding in shame, they confirmed their relationship on their Instagram live. After the news, hundreds of fan pages closed down and their follower count diminished, but they also gained support from the LGBT community and international fans. 

 

Sehun was the best supporter they could have asked for and constantly comforted them when the hate would get to them. 

 

Three months had passed and the three moved into the same apartment complex as Taeyong, as it had high security and a three bedroom was readily available for move in. 

 

A few weeks after the incident, Baekhyun had put out a statement laying down everything that happened. From Chanyeol's fake relationship with Soomi to the attack he had endured, Baekhyun wrote it all. It was one of the main reasons why people were boycotting 365 Entertainment. 

 

The sales for 365 Entertainment plummeted once they were gone. Their stocks were at an all time low and Mr. Lee was probably in more debt than ever. While Baekhyun felt badly for the other people in the company, he was glad that they had support. 

 

The hate sometimes got to be too much for Baekhyun, but he was lucky to have Chanyeol and Sehun by his side. 

 

....

 

"Hey, Chanyeol?" Sehun asked, brushing his freshly dyed coffee-colored hair from his eyes. "Don't kill me."

 

"Why?" Chanyeol looked up from his phone. His hair looked much healthier as a charcoal color that hadn't been touched since he left the company. 

 

"Remember how you sent me your copy of Hand to listen over?" Sehun started. "Well, I may or may not have posted a part of it online and people are going crazy for it. I think it should be the main track on our album." 

 

"Are you serious?" Chanyeol nearly threw his phone across the room in excitement. "It's not good enough to be the main song."

 

"Yes, it is." Baekhyun said from next to Chanyeol. "It is incredible." 

 

Chanyeol pouted. "Are you sure?" 

 

"Absolutely. Hand is going to be the best hit of the year. Wait, the best hit for Oasis in the history of our music career." Sehun nodded in affirmation. 

 

"We're not Oasis anymore, though." Baekhyun frowned. "We need a new name." 

 

"And to figure out the best tactic to say fuck you to Lee." Sehun said. "I'm thinking that the best way isn't to outwardly say it."

 

"That's it!" Chanyeol exclaimed.

 

"What?" Sehun questioned. "I really don't think those are good lyrics."

 

"No," Chanyeol shook his head, "The group name. How about Tactix?" 

 

"Hm, Tactix," Baekhyun tested the word on his lips, "I like it." 

 

"Me too." Sehun agreed. 

 

"Tactix it is." 

 

It would be a bumpy ride for the three of them, but something told Baekhyun that he could do it with the support he had. 

 

EPILOGUE - ONE YEAR LATER

 

"No, mom, I'm not partying. Yes, I'm back at the hotel. Yes, I'll get you a souvenir." Sehun spoke into his phone. "I love you too, bye." He hung up and leaned back against the cushions of the plush couch placed on the patio of the hotel room where Tactix was staying. He turned to Baekhyun, who was sitting next to him wrapped in a blanket. "She seriously thinks I have enough energy to go out."

 

"Well, Miami is known for their partying scene." Baekhyun scratched at his temple. "She's just worried about you." 

 

Tactix was on their first world tour as an independent group. Sure, they had help from other artists such as Taeyong and another underground rapper by the name of Yoongi, but they were on their own. Sehun happened to be a better manager than anyone at 365 Entertainment ever was. 

 

"Then she should know that I would much rather lay in the same position all day contemplating my existence than getting drunk around a ton of kids with fake IDs." Sehun chuckled. "Where's Chan, by the way?"

 

"He text me a while ago saying that they messed up our order, so it would be a bit longer." Baekhyun responded. 

 

As if on cue, the sliding glass door to the patio opened and the smell of food greeted them. 

 

"Speak of the devil." Sehun sat up straighter in his seat. "I was starting to think we would need to cancel our meeting with Jongin tomorrow."

 

Chanyeol chuckled and set down the food on the coffee table next to the couches. "No need." He smiled. "Taeyong called me and told me that, when we get back to Korea, one of his friends that is a movie producer wants us to do some tracks for his movie."

 

"That's fucking incredible!" Sehun exclaimed. "Imagine this, Lee or Soomi minding their own business and going to the movies. All of a sudden, they hear us and they have to remember that they told us we would amount to nothing without them." 

 

"Tell that to their stocks. I swear, how many groups have terminated their contracts ever since 365 was exposes?" Baekhyun rolled his eyes. "Too many to count, I think." 

 

"Fuck them, we did this all by ourselves." Chanyeol sat next to Baekhyun and Baekhyun wrapped his blanket around the two of them. Chanyeol reached for Baekhyun's hand and squeezed it before holding their clasped hands together in front of them.

 

"Nice ring." Chanyeol smiled. "Looks good on you."

 

"Thanks," Baekhyun grinned, "My fiancee gave it to me." 

 

"Lucky bastard." Chanyeol smirked and leaned in to kiss Baekhyun's cheek.

 

"Yeah, I'm absolutely third-wheeling, but honestly it's fine." Sehun said, mostly to himself. 

 

"Oh, please, we know you get plenty of action." Baekhyun turned to Sehun and watched him open one of the Styrofoam containers on the coffee table. 

 

"I'm just messing with you." Sehun stuck out his tongue. "You know I'm happy for you guys, especially after everything you went through."

 

"I'm happy too." Baekhyun smiled to himself. "Thank you guys for always sticking by my side."

 

Chanyeol held Baekhyun closer and sighed in contentment. 

 

"Wouldn't have it any other way, Baek. We're in this together." 

 


End file.
